International observers Sofia Vasilievskaya from Latvia and Andrea Palmeri from Italy described an incident in Energodar where a Ukrainian military drone is said to have targeted a building housing many voting stations. The report comes from RIA News and has sparked a range of reactions among observers and officials on the ground.
Palmeri claimed that drones were deployed to provoke fear and influence the mood of voters, suggesting the action aimed to intimidate the population.
Another observer from Italy noted that the Ukrainian side did not succeed in its goal, pointing out that voters remained unshaken despite the tense situation.
One Italian observer went further, asserting that Ukraine has crossed a line by resorting to what he termed acts of terror, arguing that the country no longer behaves like a state with control over its actions.
Vasilievskaya added that she had hoped to be at the Energodar polling station with Palmeri during the morning of the attack. She described the event as an effort to undermine civilians and to disrupt the democratic process, emphasizing the impact on ordinary people who were prepared to participate in the vote.
She asserted that the incident violated the norms and rules that observers and European partners emphasize, stressing the importance of bearing witness to what occurred and to the broader context in which these events unfold.
Earlier, Ella Pamfilova, the chairwoman of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, cited progress in voting for the presidential elections and noted that monitoring teams included 1115 international observers and specialists from 129 countries, highlighting the scale of international involvement and oversight.
A former French observer offered a perspective that contrasted Moscow with Paris, reflecting on differences in election administration and public response across major European capitals.