BBC Online :
Pro-Russian activists in eastern Ukraine have said they will not postpone a referendum on independence planned for Sunday.
The decision comes one day after Russian President Vladimir Putin urged delaying the vote to create the conditions necessary for dialogue.
But Ukrainian authorities said “anti-terror” operations would continue regardless of the rebels’ decision.
Millions of ballot papers have been prepared for the vote.
In what appeared to be a further shift in Russian policy, Putin also said on Wednesday that this month’s presidential elections in Ukraine were a move “in the right direction”.
His remarks came days after his spokesman said holding such an election would be absurd.
Moscow has vowed to protect the rights of the largely Russian-speaking people in the south and east against what it calls an undemocratic government in Kiev.
But Ukrainian interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniyuk dismissed Putin’s calls as “hot air”.
Ukrainian authorities have rejected activist demands for greater autonomy and troops have been battling to regain official buildings occupied by rebels in the east.
On Thursday Ukraine’s national security council confirmed military operations would continue. Their decision comes as a Pew Research Center poll released on Thursday shows that a strong majority of Ukrainians want their country to remain unified, even in the largely Russian-speaking east.
The White House said the “illegitimate, illegal” vote should be cancelled rather than postponed.
The US and the European Union have imposed sanctions against several Russian individuals and businesses and threatened wider measures if Moscow interferes further in eastern Ukraine.
Sunday’s planned referendum was seen as a potential trigger for that.
On Wednesday, President Putin also announced he was ordering Russian troops back from the Ukrainian border.
