OBSERVERS FROM EU PARLIAMENT SAY NO VIOLATIONS OCCURRED AT RUSSIAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION (PART 2)

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS
March 2, 2008 Sunday
Russia

Observers form the EU Parliament have reported no violations in the
Russian presidential election and say that elections in Russia are
proceeding in a normal regime.

"The elections are being held normally as in most European countries,
and democratic principles are gaining strength in Russia," French
MEP Paul Marie Couteaux told a press conference.

He conceded that the Western media is biased in its reporting of
elections in Russia, due to the fact that many Western media outlets
have links to large financial groups and "fulfill their order or
orders from across the Atlantic Ocean."

This bias seeks to "divide Europe, including Russia," he said.

"All attempts to cast a shadow on Russia are doomed," he said.

Another French MEP Thierry Mariani, answering a question about a
statement by Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)

representative Andreas Gross to the effect that elections in Russia
are "flawed and unfair," said: "These people [from PACE] do not
represent the opinion of the people, while we, as parliamentarians,
express the opinion of voters."

Everywhere elections are held, there are always instances of
dissatisfaction with access to the media for candidates. "This is a
problem recorded at many elections and candidates do not always get
access to the media," he said.

He cited the presidential elections in Armenia as an example. He
said he visited Armenia as an observer, and only one candidate –
Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan – had access to the media there, he said.

"But the OSCE put its stamp of approval on those elections," he said.