Canada will never accept the results of Moscow-organized “sham” annexation votes in the Russian-held regions of Ukraine and will sanction those involved in the referendum effort, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.

The Canadian leader said in a tweet that he had spoken to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and told him that “Canada will never recognize Russia’s ‘referendums’.”

He also pledged Ottawa’s unwavering support to Kyiv “with military, humanitarian and financial assistance.”

In a statement, he said Ottawa will impose new sanctions “against individuals and entities involved in this latest attempt to undermine principles of state sovereignty,” in what he described as “further escalation” of the conflict by Moscow.

Kremlin-installed authorities in Ukraine’s four regions under Russian control claimed victory in Tuesday’s voting, saying preliminary results show a majority in favor of Moscow’s annexation.

The leaders of Ukraine’s Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions on Wednesday called on President Vladimir Putin to formally annex the territories to Russia.

Only Donetsk – which together with Lugansk forms the industrial Donbass region and has been partially controlled by pro-Kremlin separatists since 2014 – has yet to formally ask Putin for annexation.

Earlier, Trudeau had called the polls “illegitimate” and “sham” and denounced Moscow’s “attempted illegal annexation of Ukrainian lands.”

“Let me be clear: Ukraine’s borders will not change. The territory of Ukraine will remain Ukraine’s,” he said.