Statement by the Secretary General Thomas E. Garrett on presidential election in Russia

In 2000, the Russian Federation joined 106 other nations in adopting the Warsaw Declaration, which has a first principle committing to regular, free, and fair elections open to multiple parties, conducted by secret ballot, monitored by independent electoral authorities, and free of fraud and intimidation.

Twenty-four years later, the undemocratic process keeping Vladimir Putin in power concluded with its pre-ordained result.  The sham “election,” which allowed no genuine opposition candidates and was covered by a media fully controlled by the Kremlin, is not only undemocratic but illegitimate in its violation of international law through the use of so-called polling stations in Russian-occupied territories in Georgia, Ukraine, and Moldova.

Russia’s repression at home and its aggression abroad are linked; democracies must reject this staged election process and, with it, Putin’s claim to represent the will of the Russian people.