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Three million ballot papers - enough for the whole Donetsk region - have been printed, reports Richard Galpin
Pro-Russian activists in eastern Ukraine are due to consider a proposal by Russian President Vladimir Putin to delay referendums on autonomy.
Mr Putin said putting off the vote could help create the conditions necessary for dialogue.
Separatist leaders in Donetsk and Luhansk say they will put the matter before "people's councils".
But Ukrainian authorities said "anti-terror" operations would continue regardless of the rebels' decision.
The referendums are due to take place on Sunday and millions of ballot papers have been prepared.
The announcement by the Russian president yesterday came as a surprise and may be an indication that Mr Putin is having second thoughts about pursuing a policy aimed at de-stabilising Ukraine.
But while Mr Putin may want the referendum delayed, the question now is whether the pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine, who are backed by Moscow, will listen to him.
They say they will meet today to decide what to do. They claim they have already distributed millions of ballot papers to polling stations for the referendum due to be held on Sunday.
And in what appeared to be a further shift in Russian policy, Mr 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.
Military operation continuesMoscow 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.
Pro-Russian activists in the eastern cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, were quick to respond to Mt Putin's comments, saying they would discuss the proposals to delay Sunday's plebiscites.
"We respect Putin's stance," Denis Pushilin, one leader in Donetsk said.
But Ukrainian interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk dismissed Mr 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.
"The counterterrorist operation will go on regardless of any decisions by any subversive or terrorist groups in the Donetsk region," the council's secretary Andriy Parubiy said.
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.
But Nato and the Pentagon said they had seen no signs of a Russian pull-back.
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BBC's Sarah Rainsford: "People are saying that tear gas was used to evacuate a government building"
Unrest in the south and east of Ukraine has worsened since Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in March.
That followed the ousting of Ukraine's pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in February by pro-Western protesters.
In the southern port of Mariupol, where pro-Russian separatists have confronted Ukrainian government forces, residents were surprised to hear of President Putin's call to postpone the referendums.
The BBC's Sarah Rainsford in the city reports that pro-Russian activists continued distributing flyers and banners still flew.
Our correspondent met one woman, Lena, who said of President Putin: "We'll listen to him...but we will decide".
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