MOSCOW, 20 September (BelTA) - The elections to the Russian State Duma held on 17-19 September were in line with democratic principles, Chairman of the International Affairs and National Security Commission of the Council of the Republic, Chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly Commission on Foreign Policy Sergei Rachkov, who is coordinator of the group of observers from the Parliamentary Assembly, told the media on 20 September.
“We have registered neither any faults nor violations which could influence the process and the results of the elections. Observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Russia-Belarus Union State came to a conclusion that the elections to the State Duma of Russia, which took place on 17-19 September, were held in compliance with Russian election legislation, met the principles of democratic elections, and were open and competitive,” Sergei Rachkov said.
He stressed that the observers from the Parliamentary Assembly exercised their functions openly and independently, being guided by the principles of political neutrality and non-interference in the electoral process. “We believe that the very fact of election observation gives the right to make an assessment of the voting process and its results to those who observed and denies such a right to those who withdrew from observation,” said the coordinator of the group of observers from the Parliamentary Assembly.
During the State Duma elections, a delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly was part of the CIS observation mission. The delegation also included Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on International Affairs Oleg Gaidukevich, Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Legislation Aleksandr Omelyanyuk, Deputy Chairperson of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on International Affairs Olga Petrashova and member of the Council of the Republic Standing Committee on Economy, Budget and Finance Andrei Shishkin. According to Sergei Rachkov, all members of the delegation are experienced observers, who previously worked as part of various observation missions, including the OSCE/ODIHR.
Belarusian MPs visited a total of 85 polling stations during the current elections to the State Duma of Russia. According to Sergei Rachkov, election processes in Russia are of great interest for the Belarusian MPs, including in the context of the preparation for the planned referendum on the Constitution of Belarus.
Observers from the Parliamentary Assembly hailed the conditions created for the elections and their observation in Russia. “The Union State MPs took note of a high voters' turnout and a calm atmosphere of the voting,” Sergei Rachkov added.
According to preliminary data from the Russian CEC, the United Russia party won the State Duma elections.
