Russia Toughens its Pressure on Critics while Wagner Recruits via Porn Site

Опубликовано: 16 Март 2023

Prigozhin FreedomTV Screenshot

Putin's close friend, the head of the infamous Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin. (Photo: Freedom TV/Youtube, screenshot, License)

Russian authorities took another step toward stifling media freedom and free speech in general on Tuesday, when lawmakers passed a bill that criminalizes the discrediting and the publishing “false” news about any force fighting for Russia in Ukraine, not only the Russian Army.

The amended criminal law will go into effect once Russian President Vladimir Putin signs it and will now punish not only those who publicly criticize the Russian Armed Forces and their soldiers, but also those who try to criticize volunteers or mercenaries fighting for Russia in Ukraine, such as the notorious Wagner Group, led by Putin’s friend Yevgeniy Prigozhin.

“Everyone who is risking his life today to safeguard the security of the country and its residents is protected from provocations and falsehoods,” the Chairman of the Russian State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin announced.

He warned that individuals who defy the rule will face harsh penalties, including up to 15 years in prison and fines up to five million Russian rubles (US$65,383).

“Today, every soldier and officer, whether in armed formations or volunteers, must realize that lies and slander against him will be punished, and that he is protected by law,” Volodin explained.

The bill will now also protect mercenaries from public criticism, despite the recent dissent between Prigozhin and the Russian Army's command over the offensive in Bakhmut, the administrative center of the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

The U.K. Ministry of Defence stressed in its latest intelligence report on Thursday, that “Russia’s only notable recent tactical success has been in the Bakhmut sector, which is dominated by Wagner Group mercenary forces, currently engaged in a public feud with the Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD).”

“There is a realistic possibility that Russia’s MoD has been insistent in its drive for success in Vuhledar, partially because it wants its own success to compete with Wagner’s achievements,” it said.

In order to demonstrate his group’s superiority over the Russian Army fighting in Ukraine, Prigozhin, whose Wagner Group was previously recruiting even prisoners from Russian jails, has adopted a new strategy to lure more potential mercenaries.

He paid for an advertisement to try to get the attention of those visiting the X-rated pornographic website – Pornhub.

“We are looking for fighters from all Russian regions,“ a female voice called on Pornhub visitors, while licking a pink lollipop, Ukrainian news outlet Ukrainskaya Pravda reported. A phone number, claimed to be one of Wagner recruiting centers’, popped up at the end of the ad.

According to Newsweek, a Pornhub spokesperson stated that the adult page removed the ad because the service does not allow any politically linked marketing.

Prigozhin said in an audio message via his press service that the ad was a smart marketing concept.