European lawmakers assembly suspends Russia's vote
PARIS (AP) — A European parliamentary assembly has suspended Russia's right to vote and take part in election observations to punish its takeover of Crimea.
The vote Thursday came after a boycott from Russia's 18-strong delegation. In a tweet, Russian delegation chief Alexey Pushkov called the actions by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe a "farce that can only elicit revulsion."
The grouping of lawmakers from 47 countries includes Russia and Ukraine. Among the Russian delegation is a lawmaker targeted by both European Union and U.S. sanctions.
The Strasbourg, France-based Council of Europe is the continent's human rights watchdog and its court issues binding decisions, although the assembly doesn't pass laws. Britain had pushed for Russia to lose its place altogether.
The suspension is valid until the end of the year.
