Moscow considers Ukraine's upcoming presidential elections illegitimate, Russia's permanent envoy to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said Friday.
"At present, we believe these elections are illegitimate because they don't match the agreement (signed between Ukraine' s opposition and president Viktor Yanukovych on Feb. 21)," Andrei Kelin told a televised news briefing in Vienna.
Kelin said that in order to be legitimate, the country's leader must enjoy the support of the general population.
"For that, urgent constitutional reform is required, with no delay," the diplomat noted.
Moscow expects the OSCE monitoring mission will protect Russian-speaking population in Ukraine against extremism and neo-Nazism, Kelin said.
Early presidential elections in Ukraine are scheduled for May 25 after President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted by the parliament on Feb. 22.