Russia holds votes in occupied parts of Ukraine; Kyiv says residents coerced

A service member of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic stands guard at a polling station ahead of the planned referendum on the joining of the Donetsk people's republic to Russia, in Donetsk, Ukraine September 22, 2022. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

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KYIV (Reuters) - Russia launched referendums on Friday aimed at annexing four occupied regions of Ukraine, drawing condemnation from Kyiv and Western nations who dismissed the votes as a sham and pledged not to recognise their results.