February 24, 2025
Putin

President Vladimir Putin has delivered a stark warning to Russian “traitors” who he said the West wanted to use as a “fifth column” to destroy the country.

The Kremlin leader assailed Russians who he said were more mentally in tune with the West than Russia and said the Russian people would quickly be able to tell the difference between traitors and patriots.

“Of course, they [the West] will try to bet on the so-called fifth column, on traitors — on those who earn their money here but live over there. Live, not in the geographical sense, but in the sense of their thoughts, their slavish thinking,” he told government ministers, three weeks into Russia’s war with Ukraine.

“Any people, and especially the Russian people, will always be able to distinguish the true patriots from the scum and the traitors and just to spit them out like a midge that accidentally flew into their mouths.

“I am convinced that this natural and necessary self-cleansing of society will only strengthen our country, our solidarity, cohesion, and readiness to meet any challenge.”

The speech appeared to be a warning that his authoritarian rule, which had already grown tighter since the invasion began on February 24, shutting down Russian news outlets and arresting protesters, could grow even more repressive.

In a sign of that, Russian law enforcement announced the first known criminal cases under a new law that allows for 15-year prison terms for posting what is deemed to be “false information” about the Ukraine war. Among those charged was Veronika Belotserkovskaya, a Russian-language cookbook author and blogger living abroad.

Reuters

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