The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation called it illegal to use the word "war" for Russia's invasion of Ukraine

UKRAINSKA PRAVDA — THURSDAY, 21 JULY 2022, 16:02

PHOTO: GENERAL STAFF OF THE ARMED FORCES OF UKRAINE

The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation considers it illegal to use the word "war" within Russia to describe the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops.

Source: Meduza (Russian media outlet based in Latvia)

Details: These "explanations" were provided [by the Prosecutor General’s Office] against the arguments put forward, in a lawsuit launched by the blogger Dmitry Polushin before the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow, to recognise that the blocking of the publication Krasnews.com was illegal. The Court rejected Polushin’s claim.

Hiding behind the wording of Russian laws, the Prosecutor General's Office said that "the declaration of war implies the onset of legal consequences that are of public importance (mobilisation of the population, the introduction of curfews, etc.)."

The ministry added that the term "war" is of great public importance, so Russia's participation in full-scale military operations would affect a wide range of public interests, in both the social and the economic spheres."

Reminder: The Russian authorities are trying to avoid and remove the word "war" in relation to the description of the invasion of Ukraine wherever possible. In particular, Roskomnadzor obliged Russian search engines to label the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia as a violator of the law for allegedly publishing a "lie" about the war in Ukraine on the site.