DAMASCUS, May 27. /TASS/. Syria’s presidential election was important not only for the region but for the entire world as well, head of the observer mission of the Russian State Duma (the lower house of parliament) Dmitry Sablin said at a meeting with Deputy Secretary-General of Syria’s Arab Socialist Ba·ath Party Hilal al-Hilal on Thursday.
"The election is important not only for Syria and Russia, it is important for the entire world as well. It stands for the fight for independence and the right to live by one’s traditional values. I have no doubt that all countries are keeping an eye on Syrian developments," Sablin pointed out.
Russian observers could see that the election had been organized to a high level, Sablin said, adding that the delegations of the Russian State Duma and the Federation Council (the upper house of parliament) comprised members of all political parties.
Head of the Federation Council’s delegation Sergei Muratov, in turn, was hopeful that the situation in the country would start changing for the better after the election. Maxim Grigoryev, who heads the Russian Civic Chamber’s Coordination Council on Election Monitoring, stressed that Russia would signal on all international platforms that the election had been held in accordance with all international standards.
According to al-Hilal, even though voting was extended by five hours, not everyone who wished to vote was able to. "Voter turnout figures differ from province to province, given that some areas in the southeast are occupied by the US and Turkey," the politician explained.
Syria held its presidential election on May 26. There were three presidential candidates, including incumbent President Bashar al-Assad, former lawmaker Abdullah Saloum Abdullah and patriotic opposition figure Mahmoud Ahmad Mar’ai. The presidential term in Syria is seven years. Bashar al-Assad won the previous election, held in 2014, by securing 88.7% of the vote.