President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman informed Russians this week that the “special military operation” that Putin launched in Ukraine in February 2022 was set to go on much longer because it is now “a war against the collective West.”

That’s right: a war.

It was remarkable to hear that word from Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Journalists were explicitly banned from using it as the invasion began and thousands of Russians have been detained, fined and imprisoned for telling the truth about a war which has now been raging for almost two years.

“Moscow deputy Aleksey Gorinov was sentenced to seven years in prison for saying ‘war,’” Sergey Davidis, head of the Political Prisoners Support group, told The Daily Beast. He said over 20,000 Russians have now been detained and punished for protesting against the war. “That includes 131 Russians who have been sentenced to long prison terms in punishment for peaceful or for more radical anti-war actions,” he said. “I don’t think punishments against the war will now be milder after the Kremlin openly says ‘war.’ Putin will be next to declare it.”

  • mindlight
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    9 months ago

    Remember, this is nothing but a sign that the Russian economy is booming!

    There have been so many signs of the Russian economy booming the last 2-3 months it’s hard to keep up…

    But rest assured, I’m here to help you remember the wise words of the great and courageous leader Vladimir Putin who is guarding the insides his pala…eh…I mean part of Russia from those pesky Nazis!

    • PlutoniumAcid@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Russian something goes boom but it’s not their economy… unless that’s also what an implosion sounds like.