West decries Russia's reelection of Putin; China, India vow closer ties
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[March 19, 2024]
By Matthias Williams and John Irish
LONDON (Reuters) -Western governments lined up on Monday to condemn
Russian President Vladimir Putin's landslide reelection as unfair and
undemocratic, but China, India and North Korea congratulated the veteran
leader on extending his rule by a further six years.
The contrasting reactions underscored the geopolitical fault lines that
have gaped wider since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine
two years ago, triggering the deepest crisis in relations with the West
since the end of the Cold War.
Arriving in Brussels on Monday, EU foreign ministers roundly dismissed
the election result as a sham ahead of agreeing sanctions on individuals
linked to the mistreatment and death of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
"Russia's election was an election without choice," German Foreign
Minister Annalena Baerbock said at the start of the meeting.
Playing on Moscow's reference to its war in Ukraine as a "special
military operation", French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said
Paris had taken note of the "special election operation".
"The conditions for a free, pluralistic and democratic election were not
met," his ministry said.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the election outcome
highlighted the "depth of repression" in Russia.
"Putin removes his political opponents, controls the media, and then
crowns himself the winner. This is not democracy," Cameron said.
France, Britain and others condemned the fact that Russia had also held
its election in occupied regions of Ukraine that it claims to have
annexed during the war.
The Kremlin dismissed such criticism, saying the 87% of the vote won by
Putin during the three-day election showed the Russian people were
consolidating around him.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia's election had no
legitimacy.
"It is clear to everyone in the world that this figure (Putin)... is
simply sick for power and is doing everything to rule forever,"
Zelenskiy said.
U.S. President Joe Biden has not yet commented but a White House
spokesperson on Sunday said Russia's election was "obviously not free
nor fair".
OUTSIDE WEST, PUTIN CONGRATULATED
In sharp contrast, Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated Putin, and
said Beijing would maintain close communication with Moscow to promote
the "no limits" partnership they agreed in 2022, just before Russia
invaded Ukraine.
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President Vladimir Putin speaks after polling stations closed in
Moscow. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
"I believe that under your leadership, Russia will certainly be able
to achieve greater achievements in national development and
construction," Xi told Putin in his message, according to Xinhua
News.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman offered his congratulations
on Putin's "decisive" victory and the Kremlin said the two men
expressed readiness on the telephone to pursue their "effective
coordination" in the OPEC+ oil producers group.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi echoed that message, saying he
looked forward to strengthening New Delhi's "time-tested special and
privileged strategic partnership" with Moscow.
India and China, along with Russia, are members of the BRICS group
of emerging economies that aims to challenge U.S. domination of the
global economy.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi,
accused by the West of supplying weapons to Russia, also extended
congratulations to Putin, stressing their desire for further
expansion of bilateral relations with Moscow.
In Africa, where the West has been struggling to win support for its
efforts to isolate Moscow over the Ukraine war, some newspapers saw
Putin's re-election as reinforcing the stance of Burkina Faso, Mali
and Niger.
Those three states in the Sahel region have strengthened ties with
Russia following coups in recent years at the expense of their
traditional French and U.S. allies.
"In Africa, this re-election could sound like a non-event, but given
the context in the Sahel it takes on a particular meaning, because
Putin embodies the new geopolitical balance of power on the
continent with a growing (Russian) presence and influence," said
Burkina Faso daily Aujourd'hui au Faso".
(Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Matthias Williams in
London and John Irish in ParisEditing by Gareth Jones and David
Gregorio)
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