The Russian ruling party "United Russia" is officially nominating participants of the war against Ukraine for the State Duma, including individuals involved in war crimes and the deportation of Ukrainian children. This is reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (CCD), as relayed by UNN.
Details
It is noted that following the results of the so-called primaries, the party's electoral lists included:
- Vladislav Golovin – head of the headquarters of the propagandist "Yunarmiya," whom Ukraine accuses of "re-educating" and militarizing deported Ukrainian children;
- Sergey Kuzminchuk – commander of a battalion of the 155th Marine Brigade of the Russian Federation, whose command is accused of murdering civilians in Bucha and Irpin in 2022;
- Nursultan Mussagaleev – involved in the torture and murder of civilians in Bucha.
It is indicated that besides them, the lists contain a number of other "SVO heroes" who received political "springboards" specifically due to their participation in the war against Ukraine.
The occupiers have also created seven electoral districts in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT) of Ukraine in addition to the four formed in temporarily occupied Crimea. To "fit in" the illegal districts, the Kremlin abolished several districts within the Russian Federation where candidates not from "United Russia" won in 2021,
They emphasize that the nomination of war criminals and participants of the war against Ukraine to the State Duma is not a coincidence, but a deliberate Kremlin policy to normalize aggression, legalize the occupation of Ukrainian territories, and integrate war criminals into the highest bodies of power.
"Pseudo-elections in the TOT are part of the same strategy. The Kremlin seeks to create an appearance of 'legitimacy' for the occupation and to consolidate the violation of international law at the political level. At the same time, any elections in the TOT of Ukraine are legally null and void, and the 'authorities' created in this way are illegitimate," the CCD concludes.
Recall
In March, Russia began preparations for holding "elections" to the Russian State Duma in the occupied territories of Ukraine in September 2026. Putin ordered to ensure the "security of the expression of will" in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions.