The EU expressed its concern on Tuesday 26 December over potential lack of political pluralism in Russia and the risk that the presidential election of 18 March 2018 may not be fully democratic after opposition politician Alexei Navalny was debarred from standing.
“The Russian Central Electoral Commission’s decision (of 25 December)stating that … Alexei Navalny cannot run in the 2018 national Presidential elections due to an alleged past conviction casts a serious doubt on political...