On Russia’s undemocratic presidential elections and their illegitimate extension to the occupied territories

B90253/2024

European Parliament resolution on Russia’s undemocratic presidential elections and their illegitimate extension to the occupied territories

(2024/2665(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Russia,

– having regard to the statement of 18 March 2024 by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on Russian presidential elections and their non-applicability on Ukrainian territory,

– having regard to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,

– having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

– having regard to the 1990 Copenhagen Document of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE),

– having regard to the statement of 29 January 2024 of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the decision of the Russian Federation not to invite the OSCE to observe the Russian presidential election,

– having regard to Rule 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas all OSCE participating states, including the Russian Federation, have agreed that the will of the people, freely and fairly expressed through genuine and periodic elections, is the basis of the authority and legitimacy of government;

B. whereas OSCE participating states have committed themselves to respecting a number of principles such as those defined in the 1990 Copenhagen Document, in order to ensure, inter alia, that electoral campaigning can be conducted in an open and fair atmosphere without violence, intimidation or fear of retribution against candidates, parties or voters, and to ensure that votes are cast by secret ballot and counted and reported honestly;

C. whereas, in contradiction with these principles, the presidential election held in Russia from 15 to 17 March 2024 took place in a highly restricted environment marked by Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and severe domestic repression against political opposition, independent media, civil society and any critical voices, based on repressive legislation, politically motivated trials and arbitrary prison sentences of disproportionate length in inhumane detention conditions; whereas there have been numerous reports of serious electoral violations and systematic irregularities;

D. whereas the Russian authorities denied registration to many candidates, in particular to all those opposed to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and continued manipulating public opinion through disinformation and propaganda, thereby depriving voters of the possibility to make a choice based on accurate information;

E. whereas so-called elections were illegally held in the territories of Ukraine currently under Russian occupation, namely in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, as well as in parts of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions;

F. whereas the decision of the Russian Federation not to invite the OSCE to observe its presidential election runs contrary to the country’s OSCE commitments and denied its voters and institutions an impartial and independent assessment of the election;

G. whereas, following the limitations imposed by the Russian authorities on a planned deployment of OSCE/ODIHR international election observers to a previous election, the presidential election of 15-17 March 2024 was the second election in a row to have been held without impartial and independent international election observers in the country;

1. Expresses its concern about Russia’s presidential election, which has been described by many Russian citizens as the country’s least democratic election since the break-up of the Soviet Union and the country’s commitment to embark on a path towards democracy;

2. Denounces the holding of Russia’s presidential election in a totalitarian climate of fear and repression and in the context of an illegal, unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine, as well as the widely reported serious and systematic electoral violations in obvious breach of national law and the country’s international commitments;

3. Condemns the illegal holding of so-called elections in the territories of Ukraine currently under Russian occupation in blatant violation of the UN Charter and the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine; reiterates that, as stated by the High Representative on behalf of the EU, the EU will not recognise the holding of such ‘elections’ in the territories of Ukraine nor their outcome;

4. Reiterates, therefore, its strong condemnation of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its demands that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally cease its attacks against residential areas and civilian infrastructure, terminate all military activities in Ukraine, withdraw all military forces, proxies and military equipment from the entire internationally recognised territory of Ukraine, end forced deportations of Ukrainian civilians, release and return all detained Ukrainians, in particular children, and permanently cease violating or threatening the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine;

5. Underlines that the refusal to allow for an independent international observation of the Russian presidential election in accordance with Russia’s international commitments as an OSCE participating state points to an unprecedented degree of democratic backsliding and a critical lack of willingness to honour international commitments and respect established principles of cooperation within international institutions;

6. Notes the important expression of solidarity and civic community demonstrated by those Russian voters who followed the plea of Alexei Navalny’s supporters and attended polling stations across the country to cast their votes around noon on Sunday 17 March 2024;

7. Expresses its solidarity with those Russian citizens who, despite the totalitarian repression and the severe personal consequences they face, continue to find the courage to speak the truth, uphold human values such as dignity, respect and compassion and show the world that another Russia exists;

8. Emphasises that Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has fundamentally changed the context in which EU policy towards Russia can be discussed and determined; underlines, therefore, that any vision of this policy must be based on the firm rejection of the ongoing war of aggression, must take into account today’s political reality marked by Russian military aggressions against Ukraine and other countries in the common European neighbourhood, hybrid attacks against EU Member States, Russian disinformation and interference in democratic processes, as well as unprecedented repression against civil society, independent media and political opposition in Russia, and must ensure EU preparedness in all sectors of society; notes that the return of Russia to normal international cooperation requires Russia to accept responsibility for its actions as an aggressor, a total change of Russian policy towards its neighbours and profound changes in its governance structures;

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the Russian authorities.