UN Chief Condemns Russian Elections in Occupied Ukraine
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has condemned the organisation of the Russian presidential elections in the regions of Ukraine occupied by Moscow, AFP reports.
The official emphasises that the illegal attempt to annex regions of Ukraine is not valid under international law.
At the same time, the United Nations has reiterated its commitment to the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The presidential elections in Russia are taking place from March 15th to 17th in 89 regions, including the four Ukrainian provinces annexed in September 2022 by Moscow, but only partially controlled, as well as the annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Russia is holding the second day of the presidential elections on Saturday, with nearly one-third of the 112 million eligible Russian voters having participated on Friday, according to EFE.
According to the Central Election Commission (CEC), over 30% of Russians exercised their right to vote on Friday, to which must be added the 2.6 million who voted early due to the war in Ukraine.
On Friday, several people were arrested for spraying ink, paint, and antiseptic on ballot boxes or throwing Molotov cocktails towards polling stations.
At least two Russian civilians were killed in a Ukrainian attack with 15 Vampire rockets on the city of Belgorod, while Russia, in turn, attacked a residential area of the Ukrainian city of Odessa on Friday, killing at least 20 people and injuring over 70.
Putin, aged 71, voted on Friday from his office in an attempt to promote electronic voting, considered fraudulent by the opposition.
According to official polls, Putin enjoys an intention to vote of over 80%, so he could achieve his largest electoral victory since coming to power in 2000.
Support for the representative of the New People's Party, Vladislav Davankov, and for the communist Nikolai Kharitonov is at 6%, while the ultranationalist Leonid Slutski is credited with about 5% of the vote intentions.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
