ODIHR Observers' Quota For Russian Elections Was As Much As Possible - Lawmaker

The quota for observers of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), a part of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), for the upcoming Russian parliamentary elections was as much as possible in current circumstances, Konstantin Kosachev, deputy speaker of the Russian upper chamber, told Sputnik on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th August, 2021) The quota for observers of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), a part of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), for the upcoming Russian parliamentary elections was as much as possible in current circumstances, Konstantin Kosachev, deputy speaker of the Russian upper chamber, told Sputnik on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, the OSCE ODIHR said that it will not send observers to Russia to monitor elections in September due to limitations on the number of observers.

The OSCE believes that limitations were imposed "without any clear pandemic-related restrictions."

"As far as I know, quota restrictions apply to all observation missions without exception and are associated exclusively with anti-coronavirus measures. Moreover, the quota for the OSCE ODIHR was as much as possible in current circumstances, there was no discrimination," the lawmaker said, adding that the absence of ODIHR observes will not affect the legitimacy of the vote.