Putin's Warning To 'traitors' Sends A Chilling Signal

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting with business representatives at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, February 24, 2022. Sputnik/Alexey Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS

March 16 – Graffiti warnings on the doors of activists in Moscow. Food blogger faces up to 15 years in prison for “discrediting” the Russian army. A call to fire a high-ranking former official for “treason” for opposing the war in Ukraine.

President Vladimir Putin issued a venomous warning to “traitors” on Wednesday, saying the West would try to use them as a fifth column to destroy Russia, but the Russians would quickly be able to tell “patriots from scum”. More

A few hours after Putin’s speech, Moscow activist Dmitry Ivanov said that his mother found graffiti on the door of their entrance: “Do not betray the Motherland, Dima.”

The graffiti featured several “Z” signs, which were used to rally support for what Moscow calls its “special military operation” to disarm and “denazify” Ukraine. The motif is taken from the markings of Russian armored vehicles and tanks. More

Ivanov, who protested the war, said he had no idea who was behind the graffiti, but that he knew at least three other people, including activists and a journalist, whose doors were mutilated in the same way on Wednesday evening.

“I don’t know their goals: to scare, not to scare, or just to spoil your mood. It is difficult to scare us with such actions: we are used to such attention, ”said the 22-year-old man. Reuters.

“Perhaps this action was an addition to Putin’s speech, I think it is possible. Especially when you consider how poorly and cheaply these designations were made. It was done in a hurry,” he said.

Thousands have been detained across Russia since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.

“SELF-CLEANING”

Putin, in a speech to government ministers on Wednesday, said the Russians would spit out traitors “like mosquitoes” and society would be better off for it.

“I am convinced that this natural and necessary self-purification of society will only strengthen our country, our solidarity, cohesion and readiness for any challenges,” he said.

Asked about Thursday’s remarks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said many people are portraying themselves as traitors.

“They themselves disappear from our lives. Someone leaves their posts, someone leaves their active working life, someone leaves the country and moves to other countries. This is how this purge happens,” he said.

Following Putin’s speech, the Investigative Committee, a law enforcement agency, announced the name of the first person, a food blogger, under investigation for spreading “false information” about the Russian army on his blog.

This crime is now punishable by up to 15 years in prison after Russia passed the law on March 4 following a wave of protests against the invasion.

In an interview with Reuters, Veronica Belotserkovskaya, who lives in the south of France, said that despite her apolitical nature, she is not surprised that she was singled out, since she probably fit the image of a person that the average Russian might hate.

“You know, there is this fat spoiled woman who lives on the Côte d’Azur, in Provence or in Italy, who cooks foie gras and eats lobster, who also dares to talk from there … I have all these qualities. which the average person would find disgusting,” she said.

Following Putin’s speech on Wednesday, a senior member of the ruling United Russia party called for the immediate removal of former Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich as head of a fund that promotes economic innovation.

Dvorkovich, who now heads the International Chess Federation, denounced the war in Western media comments. More

“He made his choice,” MP Andrei Turchak said. “This is nothing but the same national betrayal, the behavior of the fifth column, which the president spoke about today.”

Reporting by Reuters, edited by Mark Trevelyan and Gareth Jones.

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