Voters headed to the polls in Russia on Friday for a three-day presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule by six more years after he stifled dissent. It also comes as Moscow's war in Ukraine enters its third year. In many ways, Ukraine is at the heart of this election, political analysts and opposition figures say. The opposition, meanwhile, hopes to use the vote to demonstrate their discontent with both the war and the Kremlin. Golos, Russia's renowned independent election observer group, said in a report this week that authorities were “doing everything so that the people don't notice the very fact of the election happening”.

Source: Hindustan Times March 15, 2024 13:50 UTC