Russia is preparing to launch a distant monitoring system to observe the U.S. presidential elections in November, the country’s chief election official said on Monday, Noyan Tapan reports quoting Ria Novosti. "The scheme will be up and running by the end of the summer, when we will be working closely with our comrades from public organizations," Vladimir Churov, head of the Central Election Commission, told a news conference in Moscow. That system will analyze official data and activists’ reports from each state, Churov said. "I believe we will reveal significant shortcomings in the electoral system of our friends from the American continent in addition to the already existing ones," Churov said. Neither U.S. President Barack Obama nor European Union leaders have congratulated Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on his victory in the country’s presidential elections, which some western observers said were "clearly skewed" in his favor. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the results of Sunday’s vote were "never in doubt." Activists and opposition groups have also alleged massive fraud. Stanislav Govorukhin, Putin’s campaign chief, described the election as "the cleanest in Russian history."

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