The AFUO condemns russia’s sham state duma “elections” staged in occupied Ukrainian territories and calls on the Anthony Albanese Government to act
These are not elections — they are a continuation of russia’s war on Ukrainian sovereignty by other means. Call it what it is: Ukrainians being forced to vote for war criminals at gunpoint.
We welcome Australia joining Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the UK in a statement rejecting these sham elections as a “gross violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence, and the UN Charter.” But words are not enough.
We’re calling on the Albanese Government to take five concrete steps:
Sanction the russian officials and occupation administrators who organised this sham vote
Increase military aid to Ukraine, including air defence systems, to protect civilians from russia’s attacks on homes, hospitals, railways and energy sites
Close the massive loophole letting russian crude reach Australia via third-country refineries, thereby funding russia’s war machine
Redirect frozen russian sovereign assets toward Ukraine’s reconstruction and defence
Press for the return of Ukrainian children forcibly deported to russia
For our community, this isn’t a distant political story.
Members of our community still have family living under russia’s brutal occupation, and some have lost family defending against it. Sanctions, funding, the return of stolen children, cutting off every dollar still flowing to russia’s war machine, and giving Ukraine the military aid it needs — these are the actions that matter now. Calling on Anthony Albanese to #standwithukraine
Slava Ukraini! 
