Russia seeks to legitimise its invasion of Ukraine with "elections" in occupied territories – UK Intelligence
UK Defence Intelligence has reported that Russia is planning to hold sham "presidential elections" on 15-17 March 2024 in the temporarily occupied territories (TOTs) of Ukraine involving intimidation and fraud.
Source: UK Defence Intelligence review dated 17 December on Twitter, as reported by European Pravda
Details: The UK MoD notes that voting in the presidential "elections" in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories will be neither free nor fair, as was the case with the regional elections in September 2023.
UK intelligence adds that the Russian occupying authorities almost certainly regard achieving the "right" results in these regions as a priority since they seek to lend a sense of legitimacy to the Russian invasion.
"The Russian administration will almost certainly utilise methods including substantive electoral fraud and voter intimidation to ensure Russian President Vladimir Putin wins in the regions by a substantial margin," the review stressed.
Background: Earlier, on behalf of the European Union, EU Diplomacy Chief Josep Borrell condemned Russia's plans to hold "presidential elections" on 15-17 March 2024, including in the TOTs.
The Russian presidential "elections" will take place on 17 March, as the Federation Council [upper house of the Russian parliament – ed.] passed a relevant resolution on 7 December.
Earlier, Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, said he had "no doubt that Putin will win" the "election". He also added that the next Russian leader would be "the same" as Vladimir Putin or "someone else, but just like him".
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