Russia condemns Western calls not to recognise Nicaragua vote

MOSCOW – Russia on Monday denounced Western calls not to recognise Sunday’s presidential election in Nicaragua as “unacceptable”, saying the vote took place “in accordance with the law.”

The US dismissed the landslide re-election of President Daniel Ortega to a fourth straight term in Nicaragua as a “sham”, while the EU said the Central American country was now fully an “autocratic regime.”

“The White House, literally last night when elections ended, refused to recognise them and called on other countries to do the same,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

“We consider this unacceptable and we strongly condemn such a stance,” Lavrov said at a news conference in Moscow with his Venezuelan counterpart Felix Plasencia.

Plasencia said Nicaragua’s election was “held in an orderly manner, in full compliance with Nicaraguan legislation.”

“What we should do, and it’s a good opportunity to do it in Moscow, is to reject Washington’s interference in Latin America,” he added.

In a statement on Sunday, US President Joe Biden called the Nicaragua vote a “pantomime election that was neither free nor fair, and most certainly not democratic.”

Washington and the EU have already imposed sanctions against Ortega’s family members and allies amid a wave of arrests in the lead-up to Sunday’s vote.

Lavrov also told his Venezuelan counterpart that Russia would continue to provide Caracas — a Moscow ally — with “constructive assistance.”

Russia’s top diplomat said Moscow stands “in solidarity” with Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro amid what he called “external pressure and the use of illegitimate sanctions” against his government.