The Russians in the occupied territories of Ukraine have started preparing for the so-called “Russian presidential elections,” the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, reported. Occupiers are forming commissions and campaign groups.
“Their goal is to produce propaganda films about the alleged voting that took place. Currently, they are recounting all residents in Berdiansk, Melitopol, and other populated areas. They will register everyone who supposedly voted ‘for,’ but it will certainly not reflect reality,” said Fedorov.
Residents are overwhelmingly refusing to cooperate with the Russians, leading Russia to resort to ethnic population replacement in the occupied Ukrainian territories.
“There are few locals; Russians are importing tens of thousands of Russian officials, teachers, prosecutors, and police officers. It is from these people that they will form the commissions. The palette is diverse, bringing in individuals even from Siberia. They bring in people from Dagestan who can barely speak Russian,” explained the mayor of Melitopol.
The Russian presidential elections are scheduled for March 2024. On November 14, Putin approved amendments to Russian legislation allowing the possibility of holding “elections” in the occupied territories of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian World Congress strongly condemns Russia’s illegal attempts to legitimize its control over temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine – Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson Oblasts – through the conduct of so-called sham “elections” by occupation authorities.
