The Russian government did not even say that it recognized the results of the voting, which the authorities in Kiev and their Western supporters all declared illegal from the start. A preliminary count from eastern Ukraine showed 89 percent of voters in the Donetsk region and 97.5 percent in neighboring Luhansk voted for greater autonomy. But the voter rolls were old, and many supporters of remaining in Ukraine said they stayed away.

Denis Pushilin, leader of the “Donetsk People’s Republic,” said the results showed that the people wanted to be part of Russia.

“We ask the Russian Federation to consider the issue of accession of the Donetsk People’s Republic to the Russian Federation,” he told a televised news conference. “The people of Donetsk have always been part of the Russian world, regardless of ethnicity. For us, the history of Russia is our history.”

Mr. Pushilin then elaborated about that history, while echoing Moscow’s line that the current government in Kiev was composed of “Nazis.” He also said the Ukrainian military had left hundreds dead in recent confrontations, although there was no evidence to support that estimate. Finally, he said the eastern regions would not hold the national presidential vote scheduled for May 25, creating the basis for another possible confrontation.