Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against participants in Russia’s illegal "elections" in the occupied territories
Kyiv • UNN
Sanctions have been imposed against 44 individuals involved in Russia’s illegal elections in the occupied territories of Ukraine. The data will be shared with partners.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, signed a decree enacting the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to impose sanctions on individuals involved in holding the illegal "elections" to the State Duma of the Russian Federation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. This was reported by the Office of the President on September 26, UNN reports.
Details
"This sanctions package includes 44 individuals acting in the interests of Russia and facilitating the temporary occupation of Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kherson regions, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the Crimean Peninsula, and Sevastopol," the statement said.
Some of them have already been "elected" as so-called deputies of illegally established local councils in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine. They also include other criminals and accomplices of the aggressor state. In particular, these are propagandist and accomplice of the occupiers Iryna Kuksenkova and former Ukrainian lawmaker Yurii Onyshchuk, who began cooperating with the Russians after the occupation of Melitopol.
Ukraine emphasizes that these "elections" are illegitimate, and the results of such voting, as well as all documents drawn up in the course of such "elections," have no legal basis whatsoever. They grossly violate the norms and principles of international law.
The "elections" were accompanied by widespread falsifications, forced voting, and pre-fabricated turnout figures. In this way, Russia is attempting to legitimize its war crimes and use the imitation of an electoral process as one of the tools to consolidate control over the Ukrainian territories it has seized.
The relevant information will be shared with partners to synchronize sanctions in their jurisdictions.
Ukraine and partner countries did not recognize the "elections" in the temporarily occupied territories of our country. Those who condemned Russia's actions include the EU countries, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
To remind you
In Russia, a three-day vote was held in the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation. These were the first parliamentary elections in Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The campaign took place amid war, limited participation by anti-war candidates, and Russia's holding of a vote in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.