The heads of foreign affairs committees from 23 parliaments have condemned the so-called "elections" of the President of Russia in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
According to the X(Twitter) account of the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Seimas of Lithuania, Žygimantas Pavilionis, the parliamentarians in a joint statement referred to the pseudo-elections as another provocation by Russia, as well as an attempt to legitimize the occupation of Ukrainian territories.
The heads of the foreign affairs committees also reminded that the country acting as a terrorist state, after a full-scale invasion, notably intensified the suppression of political dissent and freedom of the media, and potential anti-war presidential candidates are prohibited from participating in the elections.
"We unequivocally reject the legitimacy of the elections held by Russia in the occupied Ukrainian territories. Such actions by Russia on internationally recognized Ukrainian territory are absolutely illegitimate and will not be recognized by the international community," the statement said.