The St. Petersburg municipal deputies of the Smolninskoye district are planning to send an appeal to the State Duma in the coming days with a proposal to accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of high treason because of the war in Ukraine. This was announced by the deputy Dmitry Palyuga.
According to Palyuga, "the decision was supported by the majority of deputies present." In a conversation with The Insider, Palyuga clarified that out of ten people, seven voted in favor.
According to the authors of the appeal, Putin's actions from the beginning of the special military operation fall under Article 93 of the Constitution, according to which the president can be removed from office on the basis of charges of treason or other grave crimes brought by the State Duma.
The president's decision to attack Ukraine "harms the security of Russia and its citizens," the appeal says, as the Russian army loses its combat-ready units and citizens become disabled. Also, the authors of the appeal draw attention to the fact that the withdrawal of foreign companies from the market and the emigration of the educated population cannot “leave a trace on the economic well-being of Russian citizens.” The deputies note that the NATO bloc, contrary to the stated goals, is expanding to the east, and Ukraine is receiving modern military equipment.
“One of the goals declared by the President of Russia is the demilitarization of Ukraine, and we see that exactly the opposite is happening. It’s not that we fully support the goals declared by President Putin, but simply within the framework of his own rhetoric, he harms the security of the Russian Federation, Palyuga explained in an interview with The Insider. “We want to show people that there are deputies who do not agree with the current course and believe that Putin is harming Russia. We want to show people that we're not afraid to talk about it."