The Federation Council called for an end to foreign interference in electoral processes
International structures and organizations supervised by Western governments continue to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, carrying out coups d'etat and threatening the existence of their statehood.
Chairman of the Committee Grigory Karasin stated this during a visiting meeting of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“In September 2021, elections to the State Duma will take place. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly set the task of ensuring the integrity and transparency of the upcoming election campaign. He expressed confidence that Russian citizens will be able to make their choice without helpful and often dangerous tips from outside that bring discord in society. It is very important for us.
Naturally, international observers will be invited to the elections. Their work is an organic part of the electoral process in the Russian Federation. But our traditional openness should not allow political games imposed from outside.
We are aware of facts when, to please the foreign policy situation, some observation missions broadcast pre-prepared politicized assessments, and they are subsequently played out to interfere in the internal affairs of our country,” he said.
Grigory Karasin noted that over time this problem has only intensified - today international monitoring institutions are already openly used to exert pressure and interfere in the internal affairs of states.
“These questions have only become more pressing. The institution of international election observation often becomes an instrument of external pressure on specific countries. To do this, some countries seek to use it as an artificial catalyst for internal processes that are necessary for them and dangerous for statehood, mass unauthorized actions, and coups d'état and external legitimization of pseudo-winners.
We regularly observe how international missions deliberately go beyond their powers and make arbitrary assessments of the observance of human rights in principle. The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights continues to play a leading role in this. Their claims, as a rule, are made depending on the political outcome of the elections,” the chairman added.
He stressed that it is time for Russia to take appropriate measures and deprive these supervisory structures of their international monopoly.
“Let’s be honest - the Bureau prefers to turn a blind eye to shortcomings in the electoral system of Western countries, and, despite obvious and serious problems, presents the results of elections in European countries and the United States in an uncritical manner. This indicates the continuation of the practice of double standards.
In the current circumstances, we have the right to expect conscious positive changes from the ODIHR. We need to adjust our approaches to the institution of international election observation, and in the future, subject the ODIHR’s international monopoly on assessing their results to a rigorous analysis,” Karasin concluded.
The Federation Council called for an end to foreign interference in electoral processes.