MOSCOW, July 23. /TASS/. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s protests in connection with the participation of Donbass residents who have Russian citizenship in the upcoming elections to the Russian State Duma (lower house of parliament) will in no way affect their right to vote, State Duma Deputy Speaker Pyotr Tolstoy announced on his Telegram channel on Friday.

"The elections will take place anyway, whether they protest or not. All Russian citizens are eligible to vote regardless of where they live. That also applies to hundreds of thousands of Donbass residents. The Ukrainian authorities’ hysteria will in no way affect the people’s right to take part in the elections," he noted.

Tolstoy recalled that those who obtained Russian citizenship get an opportunity not only to enter the Russian Federation but also have the right to basic social guarantees, the right to elect and be elected.

"For several years, Kiev has been infringing upon the rights and freedoms of those whom it considers its citizens, not only the right to vote, but also the right to life itself, while Russia guarantees these rights," Tolstoy concluded.

On Tuesday, Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) approved a resolution, according to which residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics (DPR and LPR) who have obtained Russian citizenship will be able to vote in the elections to the State Duma online. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry lodged a protest over that move, describing it as "a blatant violation of the norms and principles of international law, the Constitution and current legislation of Ukraine."

On June 17, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an executive order on holding the vote to the State Duma of the eighth convocation on Election Day, September 19, 2021. The election will run for three days - September 17, 18, and 19. In addition to the State Duma race, direct voting to elect the heads of nine Russian constituent entities and 39 regional parliaments will be held. In three more regions, the top officials will be elected by legislative assemblies.