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 The United States has urged the Russian Government to conduct an independent, credible investigation of all reported electoral violations in connection with the country's presidential election, BBC reported.

The US State Department issued a statement on Monday on the basis of the preliminary report of the observer mission of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and other assessments of the presidential election by Russian election monitors.

Candidates in the Presidential election were able to campaign unhindered, but conditions were clearly skewed in favor of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the international observers concluded in a post-poll statement issued on Monday.

The observers noted that all candidates had access to the media, but Putin was given a clear advantage over his competitors in terms of media presence. In addition, state resources were mobilized at the regional level in his support. Also, overly restrictive candidate registration requirements limited genuine competition.