DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — A pro-Russia insurgency in east Ukraine has decided to go ahead with a referendum on autonomy despite a call from Russian President Vladimir Putin to delay the vote.

The coordinating committee of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic announced after a meeting today that it would hold the vote on Sunday as planned.

Putin on Wednesday had urged them to delay the referendum, which many fear could be a flashpoint for further violence between Ukrainian troops and the pro-Russia militants who have seized government buildings in about a dozen cities in eastern Ukraine.

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