Early separatism and sanctions On 5 April 2014, Pushilin led a rally in Donetsk, identifying himself as deputy to
Pavel Gubarev, the "People's Governor" of Donetsk. Pushilin demanded a referendum, like that of
Crimea, on the question of independence from the new Ukrainian government in Kyiv. By the end of April, the
European Union (EU) had placed sanctions on Pushilin, which included freezing assets and banning him from entering EU member states. In June, the United States added Pushilin to the
Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List. His name has since been added to sanction lists of
Australia,
Canada,
Norway,
Liechtenstein and
Switzerland. He was also sanctioned by the
UK government.
Chairman of the Supreme Council On 19 May 2014, Pushilin became the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the
Donetsk People's Republic, and under the draft constitution adopted on 15 May, the new republic's head of state. In June 2014, he announced that DPR businesses which engaged in tax evasion would be nationalized. Pushilin did not envision the Donetsk People's Republic becoming an independent state but preferred to join the
Russian Federation (which he saw as a potential renewed
Russian Empire). and 12th of June 2014. Pushilin was in
Moscow on those dates, as was widely reported at the time. Pushilin resigned from his post of the
Chairman of the Donetsk People's Republic in July 2014. From 14 November 2014 to 4 September 2015, he served as a vice-chairman of the Donetsk People's Republic Council; then he replaced
Andrei Purgin and became the Chairman of the council once again. From 2014 to 2018, Pushilin officially represented the DPR at the
Trilateral Contact Group and the
Minsk II agreements. The Minsk II agreements subsequently failed, with each side accusing the other of violating the ceasefire terms.
Head of the Donetsk People's Republic On 31 August 2018, DPR leader
Alexander Zakharchenko was assassinated in a bombing of a restaurant in
Donetsk. After a week-long interim leadership by
Dmitry Trapeznikov, Pushilin was appointed acting Head of the DPR on 7 September 2018; he was to hold this position until elections on 11 November 2018. He claimed to have won those elections with 60.85% of the vote. On 6 December 2021 Pushilin became a member of the Russian ruling party
United Russia.
Russian invasion of Ukraine and annexation of the Donetsk People's Republic On 21 February 2022, Pushilin signed an agreement for friendship, cooperation, and mutual assistance between the Donetsk People's Republic and the Russian Federation. At this ceremony were also signed an agreement between the
LPR and Russia, and executive orders by President Putin to officially recognize the independence of the DPR and LPR. In April 2022, news outlets noted that during Pushilin's visit to Mariupol, he awarded Senior Lieutenant Roman Vorobyov a medal, while he was wearing patches affiliated with
neo-Nazism: the
Totenkopf used by the
3rd SS Panzer Division, and the
valknut. at a concert celebrating the annexations of the four regions on 30 September 2022 Along with
Luhansk People's Republic leader
Leonid Pasechnik, Pushilin was one of the key figures in the September 2022 referendum on the question of the annexed regions of Russia becoming part of the Russian Federation.
The referendum, also organised in the
Kherson and
Zaporizhzhia provinces, passed with a reported 99% approval in the DNR, and received widespread international condemnation. On 30 September, Pushilin attended in Moscow the ceremony in which
Vladimir Putin formally announced the
Annexation of Southern and Eastern Ukraine, together with the other pro-Russian occupation heads
Vladimir Saldo,
Leonid Pasechnik and
Yevgeny Balitsky. Pushilin has given multiple interviews over the years to pro-Russian British journalist
Graham Phillips. In December 2023, Ukraine sentenced Pushilin to 15 years in prison for 'encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine, as well as collaborationist activities'. As Pushilin has remained in Donetsk, the Ukrainian court ruling was declared in his absence. == See also ==