Foreign ministers from the G7 group of major industrialised countries condemned the staging of what they called “sham elections” by Russia in occupied Ukrainian territories.
“We … unequivocally condemn the staging of sham ‘elections’ held by Russia on sovereign Ukrainian territory in Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia oblasts and Crimea,” the G7 statement said in a statement, published by the UK’s Foreign Office, on Tuesday.
“These sham “elections” are a further violation of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and of the UN Charter.
“Russia has no legitimate basis for any such actions on the territory of Ukraine. The sham “elections” are a propaganda exercise aimed at legitimising Russia’s illegal seizure of Ukrainian territory.”
The overwhelming vote across Russia and in the annexed regions for the dominance of Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party has delivered on the Kremlin’s long-repeated domestic message that he is by far the strongest guarantor of stability.
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