Russian local elected official files complaint once morest Putin for using the word “war”
A Russian municipal deputy has announced that he has filed a complaint once morest Vladimir Putin, whom he accuses of having disseminated ” fake news “ for using the word « guerre » describing the situation in Ukraine.
On Thursday, during a press conference, the Russian president indeed used the word « guerre » claiming to want the conflict in Ukraine to end ” the earlier “ possible. Begun on February 24, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia is however officially called “special military operation” by the Kremlin. The Russian authorities have introduced a law providing for heavy prison sentences for any publication of information on the Russian army judged ” fake “.
“The Russian Federation has not started any war”wrote Nikita Iouferev, a city councilor in Saint Petersburg (Northwest), in his complaint addressed to the Russian prosecutor general, Igor Krasnov, and whose text was published Thursday evening on the Twitter account of the elected official. “In accordance with a decision of the President of the Russian Federation of February 24, 2022 a special operation is underway”he added, asking to investigate Mr. Putin’s remarks and to prosecute him for “spreading false information regarding the Russian army”.
This request has little chance of succeeding, especially since the text of the local elected official contains several factual errors, such as the date of Mr. Putin’s speech or the very name of the president, written in the feminine at a recovery. It is nevertheless a very rare initiative in the country where repression has accelerated since the start of the offensive in Ukraine.
