KIEV, July 3 (Xinhua) -- The pre-electoral delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) decided to cease its activity prematurely following the withdrawal of invitation to observe the early parliamentary elections, the press service of PACE said on Wednesday.
The delegation, which came to Kiev on June 2, was to assess the pre-electoral climate ahead of the snap parliamentary elections, scheduled for July 21. The delegation members held meetings with political parties, civil society and media representatives.
The PACE delegation decided to terminate its visit after Ukrainian parliament speaker Andriy Parubiy addressed the PACE president and informed about the withdrawal of the invitation to observe the parliamentary elections.
In this way, the pre-electoral delegation decided to cease its activity and canceled the rest of the scheduled meetings.
Earlier, PACE voted to lift five-year restrictions imposed on Russia's delegation which led to Ukrainian representatives leaving the room of the Parliamentary Assembly.
Russia was stripped of its voting rights in the Strasbourg-based body in 2014 following the annexation of Crimea.
