Andreas Gross, the head of the delegation that represented the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, said yesterday that the outcome of the election in Russia "indicates the will of the voters whose democratic potential was not completely realized, unfortunately." "The election was actually a plebiscite on the last eight years. The people voted for stability and continuity associated with the president and the candidate he promotes," Gross said.

Konstantin Kosachev, Chairman of the Duma Committee for International Affairs, promptly called Gross' statement "well-balanced". "What counts is that the Parliamentary Assembly mission recognizes the outcome of the election as an indication of the will of the people," the lawmaker said.

Representatives of European non-governmental organizations that monitored the election in Russia were quite enthusiastic. "The election was in line with classic European standards," Bernard Perego said.