The decree, signed by Vladimir Putin, will be followed by Russia formally proclaiming the annexation of Ukrainian territory by hosting a ceremony in Moscow, reported Al Jazeera.
"I order the recognition of the state sovereignty and independence of Zaporizhia and Kherson in southern Ukraine," Russian President Vladimir Putin was cited as saying.
According to the reports, these two regions would be incorporated into Russia along with the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. The regions would be incorporated at a ceremony on Friday. This comes after, as the West calls it, a “sham referendum".
In the referendum, Russia said it has received a majority in its favour. Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in the month of February and soon after it recognised the “independence" of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said any annexation of a country's territory by another country resulting from a "threat or use of force" is a violation. The UN Secretary-General said it was a violation of the UN charter and international law.
"In this moment of peril, I must underscore my duty as Secretary-General to uphold the @UNCharter. The charter is clear. Any annexation of a state's territory by another state resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the Principles of the Charter & international law," Guterres tweeted.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has also said that the annexation of Ukrainian territories by Russia was illegal under international laws. Referring to it as an act of “land grab", the US said it will never recognise it.
"The Kremlin's sham referenda are a futile effort to mask what amounts to a further attempt at a land grab in Ukraine," Blinken said in a statement.
"Tomorrow in the Georgian Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace at 15:00 [1200 GMT] a signing ceremony will take place on the incorporation of the new territories into Russia," Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.
(With agency inputs)
