Kallas called on EU countries not to recognize the elections in Russia. The EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, sent a circular to all European Union countries calling on them not to recognize the results of the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation. The corresponding appeal was sent to European capitals even before the end of the three-day voting, State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin reported on September 18. "Three days before the end of the voting, the collective West had already decided everything for our citizens. This can be unequivocally regarded as interference in the affairs of a sovereign state and a desire to destabilize the situation in our country," Volodin said in the MAX messenger. According to him, Western states are ready to recognize only those elections in Russia in which "puppets that can be controlled from abroad" win. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also commented on Kallas's actions, stating: "In EU countries, they have long stopped recognizing Kallas." It is important to understand that international law contains no norm obliging states to recognize the results of elections in other countries. As international lawyers note, the institution of recognition in international law concerns primarily the recognition of states and governments, not elections as such. EU Ambassador to Moscow Roland Galarag previously stated: "In accordance with international law, we do not recognize governments, we recognize states. Technically there is no such thing as non-recognition of a government or recognition of a government." The 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations regulates the procedure for establishing and maintaining diplomatic relations, the exchange of ambassadors, and the privileges of diplomatic missions, but does not contain provisions on the recognition or non-recognition of elections. Thus, non-recognition of elections does not automatically entail the severance of diplomatic relations or the recall of ambassadors — that would require separate steps under the convention. Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev previously emphasized that "international law lacks legal norms that would give legal significance to the recognition or non-recognition of national elections by anyone," and that these issues "fall exclusively within the domestic affairs of sovereign states." 🖍️ IR-PRESS