Russian parliament head backs ban on public criticism of Wagner fighters
- The group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, asked Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the State Duma, to make it an offence to criticise or be negative about Wagner
- In response, parliament said ‘all those who defend our country – soldiers, volunteers, mobilised men, and members of the PMC – are heroes’ and deserved respect
Russia’s top lawmaker on Wednesday backed a proposal by the founder of the Wagner mercenary group fighting in Ukraine to make it a criminal offence to publicly criticise Wagner fighters or publish negative reports about them.
Yevgeny Prigozhin made the request in a letter to Vyacheslav Volodin, the hawkish chairman of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, saying he wanted jail terms of up to five years for anyone who discredited his men.
Volodin on Wednesday ordered subordinates to urgently explore the possibility of amending the criminal code.
The swift and positive response from a close ally of President Vladimir Putin is the latest sign that Prigozhin – a former hot dog seller and convict – is exploiting the battlefield advances of his fighters in Ukraine to expand his own political influence.
In another show of support last week, a senior Russian politician published a picture of himself clutching a sledgehammer given to him by Wagner, a tool the group has adopted as a symbol since one was used to murder a Wagner defector last year.