This ‘election’ leaves no choice! On Sunday, Vladimir Putin intends to confirm himself as president in office once again. Leading opposition figures are either imprisoned in Russian jails or, like Alexei Navalny most recently, murdered by the regime. In recent weeks, repression against the Russian population has escalated. Alongside numerous investigations against representatives of civil society, the well-known human rights activist Oleg Orlov of our long-standing partner organization Memorial was sentenced to several years in prison for his criticism of the Russian aggression.

In the past ‘elections’ of the regime, the results were already clearly manipulated. This time, independent international election observers were not even allowed. And the voting taking place at gunpoint in the Ukrainian territories forcibly occupied by Russia is unequivocally criminal.

Therefore, we call on the German federal government, the German Bundestag, and the bodies of the European Union not to recognize this election. The demands that must be directed to Moscow as a result are: an end to political persecution and the release of all political prisoners, freedom for opposition activity, and elections respecting electoral principles with accredited independent international election observers.

Accompanying non-recognition, further sanctions against the Russian Federation must be considered. Individuals directly or indirectly involved in the fraudulent election must be sanctioned, even if it means potential reactions from the Russian Federation. However, the most significant consequence of non-recognition is that Chancellor Olaf Scholz and our other democratically elected representatives no longer have to address Putin by his fraudulently obtained title. From the diplomatic ‘Mr. President,’ it becomes either ‘Mr. Putin’ – or simply ‘Russian dictator’.