ODIHR Director addresses elections conference in St. Petersburg

Ambassador Janez Lenarčič took part in a conference in St. Petersburg, Russia, on 18 January that focused on the relationship between international election standards and national election systems. The conference was organized by the Inter-parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

In his speech, Ambassador Lenarčič noted that ODIHR observes elections in the OSCE region on the basis of principles that all OSCE states have agreed to, including independence, impartiality, and professionalism.

He also stressed that a country cannot use the requirements of national legislation to justify a failure to implement its international commitments: "There seems to have been a tendency lately to argue that international obligations are to be viewed through the prism of national legislation. National legislation cannot be the ultimate yardstick if that legislation is not in line with the international standards adopted by that country."

During the conference, Ambassador Lenarčič also met with the Chairman of Russia's Central Election Commission, Vladimir Churov.