The bureau of Liberal International stands in solidarity with Russia’s liberal party, Yabloko, and with all Russians who seek an alternative for their country grounded in the values of liberalism.

We are deeply troubled that the result, which is said to have seen Mr. Putin win close to a 90% share of the vote, will legitimise the conceit that leads to a mobilization of thousands more Russians to fight President Putin’s illegal wars abroad while sanctioning greater crackdowns at home, all the time fostering deeper confrontation with the liberal-democratic West.

We note that according to the independent Russian election monitoring movement, Golos, this presidential campaign contained more constitutional violations than any it has observed since its founding more than two decades ago. Throughout the election process, Russia’s entire state apparatus was involved in propaganda, coercion, and voter surveillance. On the last day of voting, law enforcement in some regions exerted control over voters’ will, punishing them for making “incorrect” marking on their ballots or showing up at the polling station to vote at the “wrong” time, and even demanding they reveal their vote. We are also appalled by the forcing of people in the occupied territories of Ukraine to vote.

We applaud the courage of Russians who, in these extremely difficult circumstances, followed the advice of Alexei Navalny to silently protest at numerous polling stations on 17 March, registering their dissent at Vladimir Putin’s deadly authoritarianism and reminding their country that another Russia is possible.

We will continue to support the forces standing in opposition to Vladimir Putin and to demand the release of all political prisoners including our 2023 Prize for Freedom laureate, Vladimir Kara-Murza.