The White House on Wednesday criticized Russia's alleged restrictions on foreign observers at upcoming elections. Russia on Wednesday cut the number of foreign election observers for parliamentary elections in December, which drew concern from Russia's Central Elections Commission (CEC), Europe's main elections watchdog. The CEC said Moscow had invited 300 to 400 foreign observers, including just 70 from the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). “We certainly want to see free and fair elections in Russia, and we are concerned and disappointed by the belated timing and the conditional nature of Russia's invitation to election observers,” said White House press secretary Dana Perino. The White House plans to address Moscow with their concerns over the upcoming elections, Perino said. “Any conditions that are placed on them are a concern to us and we will certainly be bringing this up with the Russians,” she told reporters as critics warned that the Kremlin could try to manipulate the vote. The current figure was three times less than the total number of foreign observers invited to previous parliamentary elections and more than five times lower for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observers.
