Interfax: All-Ukraine dialogue needed to “legitimize” election – Russian senator Margelov

(Interfax – May 14, 2014) The central Ukrainian authorities will not become fully legitimate after the presidential election scheduled for 25 May unless they establish a dialogue with Luhansk and Donetsk regions, the head of the Russian parliament’s upper house committee on international affairs, Mikhail Margelov, told Russian privately-owned news agency Interfax on 14 May.

“Without this dialogue, assuming that the OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe] is able to mediate in these talks, after the presidential election Kiev’s rule in the country won’t become fully legitimate: the nation-wide expression of the will won’t work out in the present context regardless of anyone’s recognition of the election results,” Margelov said.

According to him, one can disregard the results of the referenda in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, “but it d oes not pay to argue with numbers”. “What’s the most important is that the referendum demonstrated an attitude of the majority of population towards the Kiev ‘authorities’ and ‘Halychyna’ [western Ukraine] policies which they enforce using heavy weapons,” Margelov added.

Margelov also said that if the central Ukrainian authorities acted prospectively, then a dialogue between Kiev, Luhansk and Donetsk would become the most rational way to calm the situation and hold the legitimate elections. A referendum is a democratic procedure and Maydan (pro-Ukrainian rallies) initially advocated for development of these procedures, he added.

“Determination of supporters of ‘the Donetsk People’s Republic’ is so great that the referendum was held literally under fire from regular units of the Ukrainian army and groups of gunmen,” said Margelov.

[featured image is file photo from different occasion]