Elections in Russia: Putin’s club of friends congratulates him and the West criticizes him

Countries like Iran, China, Venezuela and North Korea congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his victory in this weekend’s elections, where he received 87.32% of the vote. On the other hand, Western countries and especially the European Union have described the electoral event as illegal and undemocratic.

Support for Putin comes from those countries that o They supply him with weapons in his war with Ukraine Oh good they do not condemn the invasionsome of them Latin American, including Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba.

Greetings, country by country

Among those who support him, he stands out China

• China:In his congratulatory message, Chinese President Xi Jinping attaches “great importance” to developing relations with Moscow. “In recent years, the Russian people have united, overcome challenges and made progress towards national development and revitalization.”

• Iran: The President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, congratulated Putin on his “resounding victory”, expressed “his satisfaction” with the growing expansion of relations between the two countries and supported further development of these ties.

• North Korea: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent a laconic congratulatory message to Putin through the North Korean state news agency KCNA: “on Monday he congratulated Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin on his re-election to the presidency of the Russian Federation.”

• Several former Soviet republics They also congratulated Putin. The President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, quoted by the Belarusian state agency BELTA, said that “it is an impressive result.” The President of Kazakhstan, Kasim-Yomart Tokayev, underlined “the support of the Russian people for Putin’s strategic direction”. The president of Tajikistan, Emomali Rakhmon, wished him “great success” for the “well-being of the brotherly Russian people”.

Latin Americans

• The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, congratulated Putin “on the overwhelming victory” and “extended his recognition to the glorious Russian people for their profound commitment to democracy.” “The Russian people and government, with boldness and wisdom, have been able to overcome the multidimensional attacks that Russia has suffered in recent times and will continue to do so with the determination and impetus that have characterized them throughout their memorable history “, states the writing.

• The president of CubaMiguel Díaz-Canel said that Putin’s victory “constitutes a reliable example of the Russian people’s recognition of its management“and hoped that ties between Cuba and Russia would continue to be “strengthened, in areas identified for the well-being of our people.” Russia sent its first shipment of crude oil to Cuba in a year to ease the energy crisis.

• The president of BoliviaLuis Arce, stated that the re-election “reaffirms the unity of brave Russian people around its sovereignty and its constant development”.

The West calls the elections undemocratic

From the EU, the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, said that the bloc “does not and will never recognise neither the holding of the so-called “elections” in the territories of Ukraine nor their results. “They are void and cannot produce any legal effect.”

But he also said that “Russian authorities have continued to increase systematic internal repression by acting against opposition politicians, civil society organizations, independent media and other critical voices through the use of repressive laws and prison sentences on grounds politicians”.

The Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, stated that “an electoral process took place in Russia which is very far, to put it in diplomatic terms, from what we consider democratic elections in the European Union and Spain with the necessary guarantees ” and that they do not grant “no legitimacy nor any rights can derive” from the votes organized by Russia “in the militarily occupied Ukrainian territories”.

In Poland, a note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that “they cannot be considered legal, free or fair”, among other things because “they do not in the occupied territories of Ukraine of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, as well as in the territories of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson provinces.

France says “once again” in Russia “there were no conditions for free electionspluralistic and democratic” because “during the electoral campaign international standards in terms of equal access of candidates to the media were not respected”.

The Italian Antonio Tajani recalled that “They were neither free nor just and also involved the illegally occupied Ukrainian territories.

British Minister David Cameron points out that they “strikingly underline the depth of repression under the regime of President (Vladímir) Putin, who seeks to silence any opposition to his illegal war.” “Putin eliminates his political opponents, controls the media, and then is crowned the winner. “This is not democracy.”