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US criticism on Duma election 'unacceptable': Russia

Xinhua, December 7, 2011

• The comment of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Russian parliamentary election was unacceptable, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

  Clinton said earlier Tuesday that the Russian Duma elections held on Sunday were "neither free nor fair". Some other White House officials also said Washington was seriously concerned by the Russian election.

  The Russian Foreign Ministry said Russia expects the U.S. side to refrain from unfriendly statements running counter to the general positive vector of the bilateral ties.

  "We have to state with regret that Washington sticks to the long gone stereotypes and labels without trying to find out what is really going on in our electoral field," the ministry said in a statement.

  "Russian citizens made their choice and took active part in the ballot. Only they have the right to determine the country's future regardless of anyone's biased opinions and politicized recipes," it said.

  The ministry also noted that the U.S. electoral system can also hardly be considered "a paragon of openness and fairness".

  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev Tuesday also slashed Washington's criticism on the Duma election, saying the political system is Russia's internal affairs.

  "If they observe elections and find violations, that is one thing. But the issue of Russia's political system is not their business," he said.

  The ruling United Russia party has won nearly half of the votes in the Duma election. Medvedev has instructed the Central Election Commission to investigate alleged voting violations, while stressing that the election complied with Russian laws.

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