The Kremlin said on Tuesday that there were many people living in Ukraine's Odesa and Mykolaiv regions who wanted to "link their fate to Russia" but were afraid to speak out.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was responding to a hypothetical question about what would happen if people in those regions were allowed to vote on whether to become part of Russia.
Russia declared in 2022 that four other regions of Ukraine were now part of Russian territory, after conducting referendums that were denounced by Kyiv and its Western allies as illegal and coercive.
Peskov, speaking to reporters, also said that Europe would be better off seeking dialogue with Russia about security issues rather than looking to build a divisive "drone wall."
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