Fireworks filled the night skies in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk as some Russian speaking residents held parties following Sunday’s unofficial independence referendum. <br /><br /> As far as members of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic are concerned they are now a sovereign state and their leaders are looking towards Russia.<br /><br /> Denis Pushilin, co-chair of the Donetsk People’s Republic addressed a crowd of celebrating separatists:<br /><br /> “Basing itself on the will of the people in the Donetsk People’s Republic and seeking the restoration of historic justice, we ask the Russian Federation to consider a merger of the Donetsk People’s Republic within the Russian Federation.”<br /><br /> The pro-Moscow organisers of Sunday’s referendum claim that 90 percent of voters in the key industrial region of Ukraine came out in favour of a split from Kyiv. Together with neighbouring Luhansk there is a proposal to hold a second ballot on joining Russia.
