Frustration is growing inside Russia after the Kremlin called on more than 300,000 civilians to help boost its faltering war in Ukraine.
It comes amidst fresh attacks on Ukraine this weekend as Russia sets the groundwork for an annexation of the occupied eastern territories.
Armed soldiers knock on the doors of residents' homes in Russia’s version of a fair and democratic process.
The soldiers are asking residents in Ukraine’s occupied territories to vote for, or against Russia.
“All of my friends are against the referendum because we are sure it will be rigged, I don't understand why we should answer the question that is written in the ballots we don't want to be part of Russia,” one Ukrainian said.
Russia is seeking to legitimise its presence in Ukraine’s east and would have you believe the referendum represents the majority view.
“For me, this referendum is a great joy, at last Donetsk, that has suffered so much, can expect the war to end,” said Tatyana Kapatsyna a Donetsk resident.
“This means a lot to us because we are Russians by nature and now I hope we will become Russians for real,” said Luhansk resident Yury Izymov.
To many, however, this is an inaccurate representation of the population of the region.
“Half of the population fled the Donetsk region because of Russian terror and constant shelling, voting against Russia with their feet, and the second half has been cheated and scared,” Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said.
In the Ukrainian capital, about 100 people from the Russia-occupied city of Mariupol, which is part of the Donetsk region, gathered to protest the referendum, covering themselves in Ukrainian flags and carrying posters "Mariupol is Ukraine.”
"They ruined the city, killed thousands of people, and now they are doing some kind of profanation over there,” said Vladyslav Kildishov who helped organize the rally.
Elina Sytkova, 21, a demonstrator who has many relatives left in Mariupol even though the city spent months under bombardment, said the vote was "an illusion of choice when there isn’t any.”
"[Its] like a joke because it’s the same as it was in Crimea, meaning it’s fake and not real,” she said, referring to a 2014 referendum that took place in Crimea before Moscow annexed the peninsula in a move that most of the world considered illegal.
Voting is taking place in four regions that cover about 15% of Ukraine’s territory.
The UN’s chief, Antonio Guterres, condemned the move at the general assembly in New York.
“Any annexation of a state's territory by another state resulting from a threat or use of force is a violation of the U.N. Charter and international law,” he said.
On the ground, Russia continues to fight back, pulling a new weapon out of its arsenal this week.
Their Iranian drones can fly low enough to dodge Ukrainian Air defences and attacked the port town of Odessa.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was outraged by the alleged international collaboration between Russia and Iran.
“Today the Russian army used Iranian drones for its strikes. I instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to strongly react to this fact. The world will know about every instance of collaboration with evil, and it will have corresponding consequences,” he said in a speech.
Russia and Iran have denied any deal, with the Russian foreign minister instead accusing the west of collaborating against his nation.
“Washington is trying to turn the entire world into its backyard and the way of doing this is through unlawful unilateral sanctions which have been for many years used in violation of the charter and used as a tool of political blackmail,” he said.
But it’s not just the west that has turned against the Kremlin with Putin’s call for 300,000 men of fighting age to boost his troops has been met with protest.
Clear signs that despite the push for a united Russian front, the people's appetite was poor.
Additional reporting by Associated Press.
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