Ukraine's Foreign Ministry says Moscow’s vote in occupied territories ‘illegal’
Any voting during the sham Russian presidential election on March 15-17 in the occupied territories of Ukraine will be "illegal, and null and void," Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Dec. 9.
Holding elections in the occupied territories grossly violates the Constitution and legislation of Ukraine, as well as the norms and principles of international law, in particular the UN Charter.
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Such a process would also call into question the legitimacy of the Russian presidential election result, the Foreign Ministry said. Ukraine has called on the international community to respond to the Kremlin's intentions regarding the temporarily occupied territories and to impose sanctions on those involved in organizing such a vote.
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The Ukrainian diplomats believe foreign countries should not send their observers to such sham elections. Ukrainian law provides for criminal liability for those who do participate.
"No elections in Russia have anything to do with democracy," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated.
“They serve only as a tool to keep the Russian regime in power.”
The head of the Russian CEC, Ella Panfilova, said on Dec. 7 that they would consider holding presidential elections in the occupied territories of Ukraine, namely in Crimea, and in the occupied parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson oblasts.
On the same day, the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation approved the dates of the elections, which for the first time will last for three whole days: from March 15 to 17, 2024.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that after the Russian presidential election, Western leaders should decide whether to recognize Putin's legitimacy if he wins.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
