PACE has declared the new State Duma of the Russian Federation illegitimate

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has declared the new composition of the Russian State Duma illegitimate. Earlier, PACE also stated that the so-called elections to the Russian State Duma would not meet international democratic standards.

According to Yevheniia Kravchuk, a member of the Verkhovna Rada’s permanent delegation to PACE, 59 members voted in favor of the resolution, with none voting against it.

“PACE has recognized the new State Duma of the Russian Federation as illegitimate and called for restrictions on the issuance of tourist visas to Russians!” Kravchuk wrote in her post.

According to Yevheniia Kravchuk, the Assembly noted that the so-called elections to the State Duma did not meet the fundamental conditions for free and fair elections.

Accordingly, in PACE’s view, the new composition of the Russian parliament cannot be considered a democratically elected or legitimate representative body.

Separately, PACE drew attention to the conduct of the Russian vote in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. In its previous statements, the Assembly emphasized that any voting organized in the occupied Ukrainian territories violates Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and cannot have legal consequences.

Kravchuk noted that amendments were made to the resolution that reaffirm the principles of international humanitarian law regarding occupation.

In particular, the resolution states that temporary occupation does not transfer sovereignty to the occupying state and cannot be used to change the legal status of the occupied territory.

“We separately condemned the coercion of Ukrainian citizens in the temporarily occupied territories to participate in Russian ‘electoral’ processes. Participation obtained under conditions of occupation, coercion, or pressure cannot be interpreted as a free expression of political will or used to legitimize an attempt at illegal annexation,” the MP noted.

PACE has previously stated explicitly that the results of the vote organized by Russia in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine should not be recognized and have no legal force.

The resolution also calls for immediate sanctions against individuals who attempt to represent the temporarily occupied territories in the Russian State Duma.

In addition, PACE called for consideration of sanctions against the leadership of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, regional election commissions, and other individuals who organized or administered the Russian “elections,” particularly in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

PACE had previously emphasized that holding Russian elections in the occupied Ukrainian territories constitutes a violation of international law and Ukrainian sovereignty.

“No Russian elections can change Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders,” emphasized Yevheniia Kravchuk.

Thus, PACE refused to recognize the new State Duma of the Russian Federation as a democratically elected and legitimate representative body, citing the conditions under which the Russian “elections” were held and, in particular, the voting that took place in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

This was reported on Facebook by Yevheniia Kravchuk, a member of the Verkhovna Rada’s permanent delegation to PACE.

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