Russian elections: Putin praises the illegal annexation of Crimea after announcing his election victory

Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed the return of Crimea to Russia during a concert marking the 10th anniversary of the region's illegal annexation from Ukraine.

He said that Crimea had “returned to its original port” and that it would move forward with Russia “hand in hand.”

Putin was addressing thousands in Moscow's Red Square a day after announcing his landslide victory in the elections.

Western governments condemned the vote and described it as a hoax.

British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said the election, in which serious opposition candidates were not allowed to run, “starkly underscores the depth of repression under President Putin's regime.”

He also stressed that holding Russian elections in the occupied Ukrainian territories is “an abhorrent violation of the United Nations Charter and Ukrainian sovereignty.”

Germany called it a “sham election,” while the United States said it was “clearly neither free nor fair.” Ukrainian President Putin was accused of “simulating” other elections.

China, Saudi Arabia, and India congratulated Putin:

Moscow annexed the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 – eight years before Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine and the seizure of the regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia.

Putin said on Monday that the “return” of those four Ukrainian regions to Russia turned out to be “more dangerous and tragic” than Crimea.

“But we did it in the end. It is a major event in the history of our country,” he added, describing the occupied territories as part of the “new Russia.” The crowd responded with chants of “Russia, Russia.”

Putin also announced a new railway line that will run from the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don to the Crimean Peninsula via occupied Ukraine, which will serve as an alternative to the current bridge linking the peninsula to mainland Russia.

“This is how we will move forward together, hand in hand. This is what truly makes us stronger, not in words, but in actions,” he said.

The current bridge, which opened in 2018, has been attacked and forced to close twice since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

Earlier during the demonstration, he said that the railway line from Rostov to the occupied Ukrainian cities of Donetsk, Mariupol and Berdyansk had been restored, and would now be extended to the coastal city of Sevastopol in Crimea.

Putin thanked the crowd for their support in his recent electoral success – which saw him win a fifth term by a landslide 87% – and was joined on stage by the three opposition candidates who were allowed to stand against him.

Russians had three days to vote, and people in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine had longer, trying to persuade the population to participate.

The president, who has ruled Russia since 2000, is now set to remain in power until at least 2030 – the longest-serving Kremlin leader since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

Russia's independent watchdog Golos was banned from monitoring the vote, but reports have emerged of irregularities, as well as pressure on public sector employees to vote either at polling stations or online.

She added that voters were unable to “form and express their free will or determine the true outcome of the vote.”

The president praised opposition activists for encouraging voters to cast larger numbers, though he condemned those who spoiled their ballots and said action would be taken against them.