VOLGOGRAD, August 30. /TASS/. The West is already trying to call into question the results of the upcoming election in Russia due in September, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday at a meeting with the public and young adults in Volgograd.

"We will never give into ultimatums and threats. We will always act based on the fundamental interests of our people. This is true of the upcoming elections to the State Duma (lower house of parliament - TASS) as well. Our Western counterparts seek to influence their results. They are trying to sow doubt that they will be fair and question their results. We saw all that during the previous election campaigns, but now all that is probably more vivid," he said.

"We have only one answer to all these attempts. We are guided primarily and exclusively by the will of our citizens, the will of our people. Our citizens are mature enough to evaluate the leadership’s work on their own, to determine who they want to see in the future State Duma and how they see the ways of the country’s further development," the minister noted.

Russia had never slid into self-imposed isolation or confrontation in international affairs, Lavrov noted. According to Russia’s top diplomat, Moscow is ready to cultivate its ties with the US, the European Union and NATO on the principles of equality, mutual respect and the search for a balance of interests. "But only on the basis of mutual respect and equality," he stressed.

No one can dictate terms to Moscow, he went on to say. "When representatives of these countries, these organizations tell us: yes, we are ready to mend ties with Russia, but first Russia must change its behavior and must do this and that, but they cannot talk to us like that," Lavrov pointed out. "It is just unwise to talk with the Russian Federation using such a language. However, our goodwill is known to everyone. If you want to talk on an equal footing, you are welcome at any moment, our doors are open."

Election in Russia

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 on 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.