EU and European states condemn Russia's Duma vote on occupied Ukrainian territories, announce sanctions
The EU, Estonia, Poland, Germany, Switzerland and other states condemned Russia for holding State Duma elections on 18–20 September on temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories and said they will not recognise the vote. EU High Representative Kaja Kallas announced planned sanctions on organisers and on those responsible for undermining free and fair elections in Russia.
Key points
- Russian State Duma elections were held on 18–20 September, with voting extended to Crimea, Sevastopol and parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts.
- The EU said it will never recognise the holding of the vote on occupied Ukrainian territory or its results, and on 21 September announced sanctions on persons involved in organising it.
- EU High Representative Kaja Kallas proposed sanctions against those who facilitated the vote on occupied territories and against those responsible for undermining free and fair elections in Russia.
- The EU criticised Russia's barring of the Yabloko party — described as the only registered opposition party with an anti-war platform — from the federal list.
- The EU regretted Russia's decision not to invite OSCE observers to monitor the elections.
- Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna called the vote a 'political show/theatre' designed to entrench Vladimir Putin's rule; Estonia said it is coordinating a response with partners.
- According to Russia's Central Election Commission with over 95% of ballots counted, United Russia received 57.83% of the vote and won 208 single-mandate constituencies; CPRF got 13.81%, LDPR 8.98% and New People 7.96%.
Why it matters
The EU's formal non-recognition turns the Duma vote into a recognised flashpoint of the war over Ukraine's sovereignty rather than a routine Russian domestic election, and the sanctions announcement gives that position concrete weight by targeting individuals tied to organising the vote on occupied land. Estonia, Poland, Germany and Switzerland lining up alongside Brussels shows diplomatic alignment against Russia's use of occupied territory as electoral ground, and frames the process as illegitimate both inside Russia — through the barring of Yabloko and the absence of OSCE observers — and on Ukrainian land it controls.
What happened
Russia held State Duma elections from 18–20 September. For the first time since the full-scale war began, voting was extended to Crimea, Sevastopol and parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts. According to Russia's Central Election Commission, with over 95% of ballots counted, United Russia received 57.83% of the vote and won 208 single-mandate constituencies, while the CPRF took 13.81%, the LDPR 8.98% and New People 7.96%. On the last day of voting, 20 September, the vote on occupied Donetsk territory was shortened against a backdrop of claimed turnout above 80%. On 21 September, EU High Representative Kaja Kallas issued a statement on behalf of the EU condemning the vote on occupied Ukrainian territory, saying the EU will never recognise it or its results, and announcing sanctions on persons involved in organising it and on those undermining free and fair elections in Russia. The EU also criticised the barring of Yabloko from the federal list and Russia's decision not to invite OSCE observers. Estonia's foreign minister called the vote a 'political show/theatre' and said Estonia is coordinating a response with partners. Poland, Germany and Switzerland also condemned the holding of the vote on occupied territory.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian-language coverage leads with the EU-level non-recognition and sanctions announcement, treating the occupied-territories angle as the central story rather than the domestic Russian results. Reporting consistently uses the framing 'so-called elections' and treats the extension of voting onto Ukrainian land as the principal violation. Ukrainian sources highlight Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna's 'political spectacle' verdict and the wider European coordination, and cite the EU statement's description of 'erosion of democracy' and the exclusion of Yabloko as evidence that the result was predetermined.
How international sources describe it
European institutions and governments — the EU, Estonia, Poland, Germany and Switzerland — converged on non-recognition of the vote on occupied territory and on condemning the Russian process as a sham, framing it as a further violation of Ukraine's sovereignty rather than an internal Russian affair.
Background
Russia held State Duma elections from 18–20 September and, according to the Russian Central Election Commission with over 95% of ballots counted, United Russia received 57.83% of the vote and won 208 single-mandate constituencies, with CPRF at 13.81%, LDPR at 8.98% and New People at 7.96%. Voting was extended to Crimea, Sevastopol and parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts for the first time since the start of the full-scale war. The Russian authorities barred Yabloko, described as the only registered party with an anti-war platform, from the federal list and did not invite OSCE observers. On 20 September the last day of voting on occupied Donetsk territory was shortened against a backdrop of claimed turnout above 80%. The Institute for the Study of War reported on 20 September that the Kremlin presents predetermined results as confirmation of broad Russian public support for the war against Ukraine.