December 26, 2022

Mark My Words


Mark My Words
Putin at a press conference on December 21, 2022. Telegram, Kommersant.

A St. Petersburg legislator has asked the Public Prosecution Service of the Russian Federation to criminally charge Russian President Vladimir Putin for violating his own law, by referring to the invasion of Ukraine as a "war."

Putin made the statement in a December 21 Kremlin press conference, saying "Our goal is to end this war." And that is when legislator Nikita Yuferev announced via Twitter his legal action against the president.

When Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24, he called it "a special military operation." Shortly after that, the government criminalized use of the word "voyna" (war) as "spreading fake news" and "discrediting the army," with potential punishment of up to 15 years in jail. A Muscovite municipal legislator was jailed for this "crime" in July.

In his tweet, Yuferev pointed out the president's hypocrisy: "Several thousand people have been convicted for these words about the war." In September, Yuferev was one of a group of St. Petersburg legislators who had a protocol drawn up against them for defaming the army.

You Might Also Like

Dangerous Dreams
  • December 23, 2022

Dangerous Dreams

Russians are being fined for their dreams, "likes," and "silent support."
The New Dissidents
  • August 14, 2012

The New Dissidents

The three women - Maria Alyokhina, Yekaterina Samutsevich & Nadezhda Tolokonnikova - on trial in Russia for "hooliganism" for their punk rock performance in Savior's Cathedral, made long closing statements last week. While people can debate the women's tactics, it is excruciatingly difficult after reading their statements to doubt that the women are serious, thoughtful and extremely articulate critics of authoritarianism in Russia. #next_pages_container { width: 5px; hight: 5px; position: absolute; top: -100px; left: -100px; z-index: 2147483647 !important; }   #next_pages_container { width: 5px; hight: 5px; position: absolute; top: -100px; left: -100px; z-index: 2147483647 !important; }  
The Nature of Dissent
  • October 24, 2012

The Nature of Dissent

How should we understand current political dissent in Russia? Russian Life publisher Paul Richardson met with long-time Soviet/Russian political dissident Alexander Skobov to get his views on what is going on in Russia and where things are headed.
A Director Detained
  • October 31, 2022

A Director Detained

Russian playwright Alexei Zhitkovsky has been detained for suspicion of engaging in "extremism."
The Price of Dissent
  • August 14, 2022

The Price of Dissent

A Russian journalist, already arrested for speaking out against the invasion of Ukraine, has had her home raided by authorities.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955