MOSCOW, October 6 (RAPSI) – Russia’s Civic Chamber is ready to form a group of observers, which is to include compatriots and foreign experts, to monitor elections held abroad, the press service of this consultative and advisory body informs RAPSI on Tuesday.

Acting on instructions of Russia’s President, the Civic Chamber in cooperation with political parties and NGOs has conducted an analysis of the results of monitoring of the All-Russian voting on amendments to the Constitution and developed certain proposals and recommendations aimed at the improvement of the institution of public monitoring.

The Civic Chamber has performed fundamental work as to development of the public monitoring institution in Russia since 2012, raising this institution to a qualitatively new level and incorporating it in all electoral procedures, the body’s Secretary Lydia Mikheyeva said.

The public monitoring institution developed by the Civic Chamber is a unique instrument facilitating transparency and legitimacy of elections held in Russia; moreover, the body could gain broad experience in following elections abroad, for instance, in the U.S. in 2012. Basing on this experience, the Civic Chamber proposes that the practice of participation of observers from Russia in foreign elections is to be continued and broadened.

Stressing the importance of forming of a group of observers to monitor elections in foreign countries, the Civic Chamber press service says the body already has enough experience to aid foreign states in organizing monitoring of elections.

The pandemic, Civic Chamber experts believe, was a factor facilitating the development of electoral institutions as there were introduced and approved new methods in organization of electoral procedures with the use of digital technologies, which are to be developed even further.

The body proposes that its powers as well as those of regional Chambers to send monitors to electoral commissions of all levels since the start of electoral campaigns need to be fixed by law in order to ensure transparency of electoral procedures.