Ukraine protests CIS plans to monitor Russian elections in Crimea August 18, 2016 - 17:10 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Ukraine has protested to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) over the organization’s plans to send monitors to the Russian State Duma elections in the region of Crimea, RFE/RL reports. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday, August 18 published a statement saying the CIS “has been formally notified about the Ukrainian stance regarding the Russian intention to spread [the elections] into the temporarily occupied territory” of Crimea and the Crimean city of Sevastopol. It noted that the elections “will not have any legal consequence” and added that any monitoring of the “farce election will be seen as an unfriendly move.” The CIS is an organization of some former Soviet republics. Nine of them -- Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan -- are full members, while Turkmenistan and Ukraine are associate states. Georgia withdrew from the CIS after the war against Russia in 2008.  Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan  A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia.U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel.Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |
