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Ukraine not linking election in Crimea to possible breakoff of realtions with Russia

Reports said last Saturday the Ukrainian president had issued an instruction to inform the Russian leadership on the impossibility of holding an election to the State Duma on the territory of Ukraine

© Artem Geodakyan/TASS

KIEV, September 12. /TASS/. Election to Russia's State Duma in Crimea is not linked in any way to a possible severing of Ukrainian-Russian diplomatic relations, Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin told ICTV channel on Monday.

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Kiev refuses to organize Russian elections in Ukraine - president

"This (election) doesn't have an immediate impact," he said when a reporter asked him about the possibility of a demarche on the part of Kiev if Russia ignored its statement on the alleged illegitimacy of election to the State Duma in Crimea and Sevastopol, which Ukraine continues considering to be its territory two years after Crimea reunited with Russia.

"We have the diplomatic realtions that exist only in form but not in essence," Klimkin added. "They exist only for giving assistance to the Ukrainian citizens on the Russian territory," Klimkin said.

Reports said last Saturday Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko had issued an instruction to inform the Russian leadership on the impossibility of holding an election to the State Duma on the territory of Ukraine on September 18.

Read also

Russia not planning to downgrade relations with Kiev — Putin

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Ukraine crisis Duma election 2016

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