PACE adopted a resolution on Putin’s illegitimacy after the 2024 elections. What will be the consequences - explains political scientist Alexander Morozov

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In Europe, after the 2024 elections, Vladimir Putin may no longer be considered the legitimate president of Russia. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution with such a call . The Assembly calls for an end to all contacts with Putin, with the exception of humanitarian ones and in order to achieve peace. The resolution says the unchecked presidential power of Vladimir Putin, who has ruled the country as president or prime minister since 2000, has turned Russia into a dictatorship.

The Russian Foreign Ministry responded to the PACE resolution. Special Representative of the Russian Foreign Minister Gennady Askaldovich said : the “marginal PACE” does not realize that “the legitimacy of the highest bodies of power, including the presidential one, is determined only by the will of the people who elect them, and not by the ordered conclusions of international organizations.”

Russian political scientist Alexander Morozov explained what this PACE resolution means on the air of Present Time.

– How do you understand this PACE initiative, which calls for recognizing Putin as illegitimate after the end of his current presidential term?

– Quite logical for the Parliamentary Assembly. Indeed, the so-called new elections are approaching, or at least Putin’s transition to a new cadence. And the Parliamentary Assembly, with this resolution, draws attention to the fact that the 2024 elections are already taking place in a situation where the Constitution of the Russian Federation was mutilated by the Kremlin and the indefinite rule of Vladimir Putin was written into it, and also to the fact that the situation with the 2024 elections is a problem, since the war finally shaped the image of Putin’s rule as a dictatorship.

It would be difficult to even imagine anything different here. It should also be recalled that during the period of rewriting the Constitution, this issue was also considered by the last Venice Commission: how legitimate this Constitution will be after what happened to it, and how this will affect Putin’s status. And the war and the relations with the European Union that the Kremlin has now developed as a result of the aggression, it seems to me, make this resolution quite logical.

Russia withdrew from the Council of Europe, it withdrew from all the conventions that it signed with the European Union in various fields: on social policy, and even on the situation of indigenous peoples. Russia has withdrawn from the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights. Thus, there are no contacts or even prospects for contacts here. Therefore, I think the qualification as a dictatorship is very accurate. The usurpation of power by Putin is an undoubted fact.

– Do this resolution and the possible recognition of Putin as illegitimate have any consequences for Russia? Lukashenko has not been recognized as the legitimate president of Belarus since 2020, but nothing seems to change.

– Of course, the PACE resolution and any decision of the European Commission, the European Council and so on cannot have a direct effect on Russian domestic politics. They are mainly aimed at giving some guidance, a general assessment of the situation to European politicians themselves, European national governments of different countries, and parliaments in general. This is quite important because it helps guide the governments of the EU countries.

But at the same time, we know well that, oddly enough, the PACE resolution and the European Parliament resolution have always been very painfully perceived by the Kremlin. Suffice it to say that the European Parliament’s resolution assessing the contemporary consequences of the Second World War and the inadmissibility of glorifying Nazism and Stalinism simply caused a storm in Moscow, which led Putin to a new historical policy.

Here it should be recalled that PACE already in 2006 voted for the adoption of a resolution on the assessment of totalitarian regimes, which at that moment was very important for all European countries, including the new countries of the European Union, and at that moment it was also of great importance for Russia as an element of interaction with Europe, and so then the Kremlin already showed some resistance to the condemnation of the communist regime on a par with the condemnation of the Franco regime, since then the assessment of Francoism was still important for Spain and for many peoples.

– And the current PACE resolution, if Putin is recognized as illegitimate, can it be considered a signal to the Russian elites: “If you continue to support Putin, if nothing changes in Russia, then Russia and you definitely have no future”?

– It seems to me that the Russian elites regarding contacts with the European Union and Europe already made their conclusion a year ago: back in the summer of 2022, when several months had passed since the start of the war, it became clear that the break with the European Union would be total. This will be a wall, a fence. I think that the assessment of the prospects for the 2024 elections in this resolution may not be so important for the elites, but it is important, of course, from the point of view of disputes, for example, within Russian society about how to act in the 2024 elections.

It must be said that European - and not only European - countries look at these elections as illegitimate, as “elections” within a dictatorship, then in this case, of course, the strategies for participating in these elections change.

– How do they change?

– Participation in these elections, in my opinion, as a result of such an assessment becomes unpromising and politically ineffective.

- What does it mean? So, will people in Russia have to go to the polls or not? Or is it simply that no one recognizes the elections?

– Those who go to the polls and vote must realize that the result of these elections will no longer be completely perceived by the world community as an expression of the opinion of these people who went to the polls. Thus, there is no point in participating in these elections.

Title: PACE Resolution on Putin's Legitimacy: Analysis and Implications

Annotation:

This analytical report dissects the recent resolution adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), questioning the legitimacy of Russian President Vladimir Putin post-2024 elections. Political scientist Alexander Morozov provides insights into the resolution's significance and potential consequences for Russia's political landscape.

Rewrite:

Unpacking the implications of PACE's resolution challenging the legitimacy of Vladimir Putin post-2024 elections, this report offers a detailed analysis. Political scientist Alexander Morozov provides expert commentary on the resolution's implications and its potential impact on Russia's domestic and international affairs.

Hashtags: #PutinLegitimacy #PACEResolution #RussianPolitics #PoliticalAnalysis #InternationalRelations #VladimirPutin

Conclusion:

The PACE resolution serves as a significant marker in assessing Putin's political legitimacy, prompting debates within Russian society and drawing attention to Europe's stance on Russia's electoral processes. While its direct impact on Russian elites may be limited, the resolution underscores broader concerns regarding democratic governance and international norms.

Keywords: PACE Resolution, Vladimir Putin, Political Legitimacy, Russian Elections, International Diplomacy

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