Putin gathers re-election signatures in Russian-held Ukraine

Activists of Russia’s United Russia political party collect signatures in support of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a candidate in the upcoming presidential election, in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, January 16, 2024. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

DONETSK, Russian-controlled Ukraine (Reuters) - Residents of the Russian-held city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine lined up on Tuesday to register their support for Vladimir Putin in a presidential vote where he is sure to win re-election.

Russia claimed Donetsk and three other Ukrainian regions as its own territory in September 2022 in a move that Ukraine and most countries at the United Nations condemned as illegal.