Ukraine issued a statement regarding the elections in the occupied territories

The Russian Federation’s occupation administration will hold so-called “elections” to the State Duma on September 18–20 in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Ukraine has emphasized that this has nothing to do with democratic elections.

This is stated in a declaration by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

“This is a farce staged by the occupying power, which has nothing to do with democratic elections and does not create any legal basis for extending Russia’s jurisdiction to any part of Ukraine’s territory,” the statement emphasizes. 

As noted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, since 2014, the only legitimate outcome of votes regarding Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories has been the results displayed on the UN General Assembly’s scoreboard, in particular when 143 UN member states confirmed the illegality of the occupation and demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from all Ukrainian territories within internationally recognized borders.

In this context, the ministry emphasized that no “vote” organized by Russia at gunpoint alters the internationally recognized status of these territories, and that temporary occupation does not confer sovereign rights on the occupying state.

The ministry noted that Russia is attempting to extend its own political and legal system to the occupied parts of Crimea, Sevastopol, and the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that the holding of Russian “elections” creates no legal basis for extending the Russian Federation’s jurisdiction to the territory of Ukraine. Nor does the occupation grant Russia sovereign rights over the seized lands.

Ukraine does not recognize either the holding of this vote or its possible results. The Ministry called on foreign states, international organizations, and other subjects of international law to adopt the same position.

The ministry also warned against participating in the organization or conduct of illegal elections. According to diplomats, such activities may have legal consequences in Ukraine and at the international level.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated that the temporarily occupied territories remain an integral part of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. The ministry also stated that the inclusion in the Russian parliament of representatives elected in the occupied Ukrainian territories calls into question the legitimacy of the entire composition of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.

Ірина Глухова