Putin defends arrests of critics during ‘armed conflict’ with Ukraine, urges people to ‘follow rules’
- ‘It’s the year 2023, and Russia is engaged in an armed conflict with a neighbour. In order for us to achieve success … everyone needs to follow certain rules,’ Putin said
- This week police detained a sociologist and accused him of calling for terrorism. In May, a theatre director was arrested on charges of ‘justifying terrorism’
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday defended an unprecedented crackdown on dissenting voices in Russia at a time of “armed conflict” with Ukraine, urging everyone to follow “certain rules.”
“We must keep in mind that in order for us to achieve success, including in a conflict zone, everyone needs to follow certain rules,” Putin added.
04:20
Vladimir Putin approves law banning gender-affirming procedures in Russia
The Russian president was responding to a question from a reporter who asked him to comment on the recent jailing of a theatre director and a sociologist.
“The people were arrested for the words they said or wrote. Is this normal?” Andrei Kolesnikov, a veteran reporter for Kommersant daily newspaper, asked Putin.
This week Russian authorities detained prominent sociologist Boris Kagarlitsky, 64, and accused him of calling for terrorism online.