Advertisement

Denmark’s foreign minister 'sees no reason' to congratulate Putin on election win

Ritzau/The Local
Ritzau/The Local - [email protected]
Denmark’s foreign minister 'sees no reason' to congratulate Putin on election win
Anders Samuelsen. Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen says he sees no reason to congratulate President Vladimir Putin on winning presidential elections held in Russia on Sunday.

Advertisement

Samuelsen was asked whether he had congratulated Putin on the result, which gave the sitting president a 76.7 percent share of the vote.

“No, I don’t think there’s any particular reason for that. It has been confirmed that the election has taken place and Putin will continue [as president],” Samuelsen said.

“It was not a traditionally free election in the way we know it, with a free press and equal competition between candidates.

“It is over, and it was very predictable, and that is what we must take from it,” Samuelsen said in Brussels, where he was attending a meeting.

Opposition activists have highlighted a number of cases of vote rigging and statistical anomalies in the Russian election, reports British newspaper the Guardian.

German chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday congratulated Putin on his re-election as president, in accordance with tradition, but also highlighted the importance of dialogue to face important “challenges”, news agency AFP reports.

British Prime Minister Theresa May is yet to comment on Putin’s re-election.

The United Kingdom and Russia are embroiled in an diplomatic stand-off over the alleged attack using the Novichok nerve agent on a former Russian double agent in the British town of Salisbury.

A spokesperson for May said that the British government was waiting for international observers from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to report on the election before commenting, writes Reuters.

READ ALSO: Danish foreign minister criticised for 'talking down' migration


Sign up here for a daily selection of the best news, features and opinion from Denmark, via our newsletter

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also