Soviet weapons depots opened, reservists are pouring into recruitment and training centers

Referendums, Finally: Real War Begins in Ukraine - New Russian Federal District & Anti-terrorist Operation Order

The borders of Russia and Ukraine have changed as referendums in the four former Ukrainian provinces come to a close. Now the war in Ukraine is moving to the next level of escalation.

Until now the "special military operation" as Moscow calls it was designed to preserve the Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and reduce human casualties. In Moscow they believed that they should not "receive scorched earth". They were rejected due to incorrect estimates and calculations.

This is now changing. The purpose of the new military operation will be to destroy the active threat posed by Ukraine and by extension the West to Russia. So the "gloves" come off and the real war begins.

The Russian Army has opened up all Soviet weapons depots, reservists are pouring into recruitment and training centers, and now the order remains for the offensive to begin.

Even T-62 tanks have come out of the warehouses….

The result of the referendum is:

Lugansk: 98.42% “NAI” in Union with Russia

Kherson: 87.05% “NAI” in the Union with Russia

Zaporizhia: 93.11 “NAI” in the Union with Russia

Donetsk: Counting at 82%, 99.06% want Union with Russia

Russian political scientist Vladimir Mozhegov described the developments after the referendums.

"I suspect that after the end of the referendums, there will be, one would say, an ultimatum to the Ukrainians to leave our lands.
The special operation will become anti-terrorist. It is unlikely that war will be declared, but an "anti-terrorist operation" is possible. In general, the rhetoric will become much harsher against the Americans and the British, included.
Already the answer is coming, we are moving towards a partial mobilization and the referendums show that the stakes are rising. Russia has no intention of leaving. Until now, the Americans have emphasized that negotiations are possible on the condition that Russia backs down on its original positions. It is clear that this stage has already passed, the stakes have changed. Putin has already said a lot on this matter.
He clearly spoke about the possibility of using any type of weapons. So we see that escalation is increasing and will continue to increase until it exceeds common sense or de-escalation follows”

Political scientist Andrei Koshkin said:

"So far, everyone is talking about changing the status of the special military operation. We are all waiting for Friday, he will make an appeal in which a lot will be clarified.
In any case, by the evening there will be relevant legal documents and, most likely, there will be an extraordinary meeting on September 29, where the results will be announced. We assume that the territories will become part of the Russian Federation.
Therefore, on September 21, the President of Russia and the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation focused their attention not only on protecting the lives of the people of Donbas, but also on the security of Russia.
The partial mobilization is carried out in the interest of ensuring the security of the Russian Federation."