Putin Accuses Ukraine of Trying to Disrupt Russian Parliamentary Elections
Vladimir Putin said Ukraine is attempting to disrupt Russia's parliamentary elections, citing a deadly attack on an election commission chair in Zaporizhzhia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Ukraine is attempting to "disrupt" Russia's parliamentary elections, speaking at a meeting of the Military-Industrial Commission in Moscow as voters began three days of balloting.
Putin claimed the Ukrainian leadership is in no hurry to hold its own elections but is trying to interfere with Russia's. He cited an attack on the home of a precinct election commission chair in the village of Oktyabrskoye in the Zaporizhzhia region, saying the official, Elena Astanina, was killed. Putin said he had signed a decree awarding her the Order of Courage posthumously.
He argued that Kyiv's talk of peace and renewed negotiations is contradicted by such attacks. "By committing crimes of this kind, they are doing everything they can to ensure that there will be no peace and no negotiations," he said, adding that any attempt to intimidate Russia would be futile.
Turning to Europe, Putin accused NATO of growing and expanding into other regions of the world, and said some European leaders openly state they are preparing for war with Russia. He suggested those leaders are trying to shore up falling approval ratings by deflecting attention from economic and social policy failures.
Putin reiterated that Russia has no aggressive intentions toward Europe or European countries, saying there are no grounds for such actions, and that Moscow is ready to cooperate and restore relations with its European neighbours.
He also called for the full completion of Russia's orbital spacecraft constellation, saying it would strengthen space intelligence, navigation, satellite communications and broadband internet access for real-time command and control of troops and weapons.
Voting in Russia's parliamentary election opened on Friday and will close on Sunday. Authorities spread the vote over three days in an effort to boost turnout among the 111 million eligible voters, and electronic balloting is also being allowed.