PARIS, March  18, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Allies of Russian President Vladimir
Putin including China and India congratulated him Monday on winning a fifth
term in power but Western leaders dismissed the election as illegitimate, held
under repressive conditions with no credible opposition.

Here is a round-up of the main reactions so far to a vote that officially
saw the 71-year-old Putin win with 87.28 percent of votes according to the
latest count:

- China: popular 'support' -

- Beijing congratulated Putin, saying the countries were "strategic
cooperative partners in the new era" and the result "fully reflects the support
of the Russian people", Chinese state media reported.

- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his "warm congratulations" to
Putin, adding that he looked forward to developing their "special"
relationship. Russia is India's biggest arms supplier.

- North Korea's Kim Jong Un said Russian voters showed their "unshakeable
support and trust" in Putin, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

- Middle East allies -

Several Middle Eastern powers wished Putin well after the vote, just three
months after he made a rare visit to the region.

- Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi hailed Putin's "decisive victory", state
news agency IRNA reported.

- Saudi Arabia's King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
congratulated Putin and wished him "success and prosperity", in comments
reported by state media.

- Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa and Qatar's emir,
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, each separately wished Putin "development and
prosperity," in statements published online.

- The president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, also sent congratulations, according to the state news agency WAM.

- Chad, Niger hail Putin -

- Chad's President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, son of the country's late
longtime leader Idriss Deby, said in a Facebook post that the result was "proof
of the Russian people's trust" in Putin.

- Niger's military ruler General Abdourahamane Tiani, who seized power from
a pro-Western government in a coup in July 2023, congratulated Putin on his
"resounding victory".

He said his country could count on Putin's "personal commitment" to aiding
Niger in "regaining its sovereignty".

- Venezuela: 'bodes well' -

- In Latin America, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said: "Our older
brother Vladimir Putin has triumphed, which bodes well for the world".

- Cuba's Miguel Diaz-Canel said the official result was "a credible
indication that the Russian population supports (Putin's) management of the
country".

- Zelensky: 'evil' -

- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the election as
illegitimate.

"Everyone in the world understands that this person, like many others
throughout history, has become sick with power and will stop at nothing to rule
forever," he said.

"There is no evil he would not do to maintain his personal power."

- EU: 'repression' -

- European Union countries in a joint statement said Russians had been
denied a "real choice" after all candidates opposed to the war in Ukraine were
excluded.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the vote was "based on
repression and intimidation".

The 27-nation bloc did not however heed a call from the widow of leading
Kremlin foe Alexei Navalny not to recognise Putin as the legitimate president
of Russia.

- Germany: 'heinous' -

- Germany's foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, said the vote "without
choice" demonstrated "Putin's heinous behaviour against his own people".

- France's foreign ministry said the conditions for a free election were
not met, citing "increasing repression of civil society and all forms of
opposition to the regime". It hailed the "courage" of Russians who demonstrated
against the election conditions.

- Britain: 'illegal' -

- British Foreign Minister David Cameron said the holding of polls on
occupied Ukrainian territory was "illegal". He said the elections "starkly
underline the depth of repression under President Putin's regime, which seeks
to silence any opposition to his illegal war".

- Canada: 'flawed' -

- Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly called the electoral process
"flawed" and a "non-democratic process."

"While he may celebrate today, history will judge Putin poorly for his
authoritarianism, war and the illegal attempted annexation of the territory of
a neighbouring country," she added.

- Discord in Italy -

- Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani condemned the vote as "neither
free nor fair".

He distanced himself from his coalition partner Matteo Salvini, who said in
reaction to the election result: "When a people vote, they are always right."

- Czech Republic: 'farce' -

- Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky called the vote a "farce".

- Moldova's president, Maia Sandu, said: "We cannot talk about free and
fair elections when the real opponents are removed from the race."

- Norway: 'violation' -

- Norway, which shares a border with Russia, said the fact that the Kremlin
had organised voting in parts of Ukraine "illegally occupied" by Moscow was "a
serious violation of international law".