Prague, Sept 19 (CTK) – The Czech Republic does not recognise the results of the Sunday Russian parliamentary election in Crimea as it was illegal and it does not consider the candidates elected in the local election district to be members of the Duma, the Foreign Ministry said in its press release on Monday.
The Sunday election gave a majority to the United Russia government party, close to President Vladimir Putin.
“In harmony with the EU policy, the Czech Republic has not recognised and will not recognise the illegal annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the town of Sevastopol by Russia,” the ministry said.
Crimea was torn off Ukraine and attached to Russia by a gross violation of international law, it added.
Europe sent hundreds of observers from the OSCE, the Council of Europe and other institutions to the election in Russia. They were present in all important election districts, except for the occupied Crimea.
The OSCE said the election was accompanied by many procedural inconsistencies. The vote was largely affected by the state-owned media, the Kremlin’s growing supervision of civic society and the curtailment of fundamental political rights.
The United Russia is likely to gain 343 seats in the 450-member Duma, 100 more than it has now.
