Russian observers will try to enter Ukraine on Monday as part of OSCE mission
Two Russian observers in the long-term mission of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) intend to fly to Kiyv on Monday, February 11, to observe the Ukrainian presidential campaign, announced the head of the Russian Public Institute of Election Law, Igor Borisov.
“An attempt will be made if nothing else happens. They are part of the ODIHR mission, which currently does not refuse the Russian segment as part of the mission in Ukraine,” Interfax-Ukraine quotes Borisov as saying.
Representatives that will be sent to Ukraine are Elizaveta Borisova from the Russian Public Institute Election Law and Kristina Bogdanova from the “Institute for Public Electoral Diplomacy”. “Both of our representatives already have quite a wide international observation experience, including work in the OSCE/ODIHR,” added Borisov.
“If tomorrow the OSCE ODIHR director says that we cancel Russia, then this is also a stalemate situation. The same as it happened in the PACE when we were told to pay contributions without taking part. ODIHR will not do this, however, there is a question of how they will insist on the fulfillment of international requirements of the rule of law, and hinder attempts to circumvent this,” says Borisov.
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a bill that prohibits Russian citizens to be observers at the elections in Ukraine. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has already said several times that it will not register observers from the Russian Federation at the Ukrainian presidential election. Last week, Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin expressed hope that the Central Election Commission will make the same decision.