Moscow-Sana
The Russian parliamentarian Leonid Slutsky confirmed that the decision of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe not to send observers to monitor the conduct of the upcoming Russian State Duma elections is politicized.
Russia Today quoted Slutsky, who chairs the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, as saying, "In my opinion, this is a significant step and references to the impossibility of carrying out monitoring tasks within an unjustified mini-mission and indicative of double standards."
He added that Russia had proposed the formation of a mission of 50 observers from the Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and 10 observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and that this decision could be considered politicized, as the Russian request was talking about health rules and not restrictions for other reasons. Of course, this will not be reflected in the elections, as they will be held in accordance with all democratic principles.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe announced that it would not send observers to the Russian State Duma elections scheduled for next September due to Russia's request that the organization limit the number of observers due to the epidemiological situation.