Vladimir Putin spoke late Sunday evening at his campaign headquarters. He thanked voters and “especially our warriors on the front lines,” referring to the soldiers participating in the aggression against Ukraine.
According to partial results previously published by the state agency TASS, Putin won by more than 87 percent. Votes.
The Russian President commented in his post-election speech To the death of oppositionist and lawyer Alexei Navalny, who died on February 16 while serving a long sentence in a penal colony. — A few days before Navalny's death, some colleagues told me that there was an idea to exchange him for several people in prisons in Western countries. I agreed. “But unfortunately it happened,” Putin said, pronouncing Navalny’s name for the first time in years.
— I did so on one condition: we will replace him, but he will not return to Russia. But when things like this happen, there's nothing you can do about it. He added that this is life. Russian authorities are accused of intentionally causing the death of an opposition member they persecuted.
Information about the previously planned exchange was provided by Maria Bioček, an associate of the deceased exhibitionist. According to her, Navalny was scheduled to be released in exchange for the release of the killer Vadim Krasikov, who is serving a life sentence there, from a German prison. The Kremlin has not confirmed these reports yet.
At the evening press conference, Putin also referred to the protests against his rule that took place on election day. Those close to Navalny and his supporters called on Russians to come to the polling stations at noon as an expression of opposition to Putin’s rule. In many places in Russia at this time There were queues to voteTheir pictures spread around the world.
“No matter who they voted for, they did something good,” Putin said, claiming that the protest organizers had thus encouraged citizens to participate in the elections. “Although, as I understand it, it had no effect,” he added.
Read also: “The back against Putin.” Lines of Russians protesting in front of polling stations
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs comments on the elections in Russia
The Polish Foreign Ministry spoke about the presidential elections in Russia on Sunday. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, “The so-called presidential elections were held in Russia on March 15 and 17, 2024. Voting took place in conditions of severe repression against society, which makes it impossible to make a free and democratic choice.” a permit.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that, contrary to international law, “elections” were also organized in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, namely in the Crimean Peninsula and the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson oblasts. The Russians also held votes in Moldova's Transnistria and the Georgian regions of Tskhinvali/South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
He stressed that “Poland consistently and firmly condemns this type of action.”
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