LONDON, September 12. /TASS/. The Group of Seven countries have condemned elections in Russia’s new regions and Crimea that were held on the single voting day and slammed them as illegitimate, according to a statement by G7 foreign ministers that was posted on the UK government website on Tuesday.
"These sham 'elections' are a further violation of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and of the UN Charter," the statement reads. "Russia has no legitimate basis for any such actions on the territory of Ukraine. The sham 'belections' are a propaganda exercise aimed at legitimizing Russia’s illegal seizure of Ukrainian territory."
The G7 foreign ministers vowed to never recognize the Donbass republics, the Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions, as well as Crimea as part of Russia and pledged to continue "to provide the financial, humanitarian, security and diplomatic support Ukraine requires for as long as it takes."
Elections in Russian regions as part of the single voting day were held on September 8 through 10. The Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions took part in them for the first time after accessing Russia in September 2022.
The Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, a city with a special status on the Crimean Peninsula, where most residents are Russian, refused to recognize the legitimacy of authorities brought to power amid riots during a coup in Ukraine in February 2014.
Crimea and Sevastopol adopted declarations of independence on March 11, 2014. They held a referendum on March 16, 2014, in which 96.7% of Crimeans and 95.6% of Sevastopol voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join the Russian Federation. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the reunification treaties on March 18, 2014. The documents were ratified by Russia’s Federal Assembly, or bicameral parliament, on March 21.