City councilors in Vladimir Putin’s hometown have called for the Russian president to be charged with treason and ousted over the war in Ukraine.
The group of city councilors in Smolninskoye, a municipality in St. Petersburg where Putin was born, made the extraordinary appeal to the Russian parliament.
They complained that Putin’s war in Ukraine had claimed the lives of thousands of Russian soldiers and damaged the country’s economy.
“Young able-bodied citizens are dying and being maimed,” the councilors warned.
The Russian economy is suffering, NATO is expanding and Ukraine is procuring new modern equipment due to Putin’s foolish policies, they said.
“We have listed the reasons why we believe this is treason,” said one of the city councillors, Nikita Yuferev, 34.
City councilors in Vladimir Putin’s hometown have called for the Russian president to be charged with treason and ousted over the war in Ukraine
The group of city councilors in Smolninskoye, a municipality in St. Petersburg where Putin was born, made the extraordinary appeal to the Russian parliament
Council members said Russians need to understand that “the land border between Russia and NATO has doubled as a result of Putin’s actions.”
Since Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine six months ago, his armed forces have suffered heavy casualties in men and equipment while coming to a virtual standstill after occupying about a fifth of the country.
Precision strikes by Ukrainian forces with high-tech Western weapons are undermining Russia’s combat capability, and Moscow is turning to obsolete weapons as its stocks of more modern equipment run low.
And Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of “good news” on the battlefields of eastern Ukraine today, saying his army had recaptured some towns and villages from Russia.
Putin’s war “compromises the security of Russia and its citizens,” said Dmitry Palyuga, 35, who supported calls for Putin to be charged with treason over the war in Ukraine.
“One of the stated goals of the Russian President is the demilitarization of Ukraine, and we see exactly the opposite,” Palyuga told The Insider.
Ukrainian soldiers on a BTR amphibious armored personnel carrier (APC) drive out of Bakhmut Wednesday as Russia’s assault on Ukraine continues in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region
City councilors lamented that Putin’s war in Ukraine had claimed the lives of thousands of Russian soldiers and damaged the country’s economy
“Not that we fully support the goals stated by President Putin, but he is simply damaging the security of the Russian Federation through his own rhetoric.
“We want to show people that they exist [democratic representatives] who disagree with the current course and believe that Putin is harming Russia.
“We want to show people that we’re not afraid to talk about it.”
Local politicians know that their demands in the State Duma, the lower house of parliament controlled by Putin’s henchmen, have little chance of success.
Nonetheless, they complied with the request.
“It is very important to show that there are people who have different opinions [with the war]’ Yuferev said.
“We are in Russia and there are quite a large number of us,” he said.
The treason request against Putin was pushed through by 10 out of 20 councillors, enough for a quorum.
The vote was seven in favor with three abstentions.
The councilors’ call for Putin to be charged with treason over his war in Ukraine is a rare case of open opposition to the war. Those who criticized Putin’s invasion have often died under mysterious circumstances.
Last week, the chairman a Russian oil company that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was found dead under suspicious circumstances after falling from a sixth floor window of a Moscow hospital.
Ravil Maganov, 67, chairman of Russian oil giant Lukoil, died on the spot after falling from a sixth-floor window of Moscow’s Central Hospital around 7.30am local time on September 1.
Ravil Maganov, 67, (pictured with Putin after receiving a medal), chairman of Russian oil giant LUKOIL, died on the spot after falling from a sixth-floor window of Moscow’s Central Hospital around 7.30am local time on September 1
Russian state media was quick to say his death was suicide, but law enforcement sources said there was no suicide note and no surveillance cameras in the part of the building where Maganov fell.
Lukoil, of which Maganov was chairman, was one of the few major Russian companies to call for an end to fighting in Ukraine after Moscow invaded.
In a statement in the days after the invasion, Lukoil’s board called for an “immediate” end to the fighting and expressed its condolences to those affected by the “tragedy”.
And seven months later, Maganov was found dead after falling out of the hospital window.
His death is the latest in a string of senior Russian officials who have died in suspicious circumstances in recent months – many mysteriously falling from windows.
Maganov is also now among a string of Russian energy magnates killed under suspicious circumstances.
In May, 43-year-old billionaire Alexander Subbotin, a former top executive at energy giant Lukoil, was found dead under mysterious circumstances.
The oligarch, who owned a lucrative shipping company, was reportedly treated with toad poison – in a cut made in his skin.
Shortly thereafter, Subbotin suffered a heart attack and was given a tranquilizer made from the herb valerian.
