Russia arrests Igor Girkin, pro-war nationalist who called Putin a ‘cowardly bum’

We’ve mentioned Igor Girkin a bunch of times over the past year. He’s a prominent Russian nationalist who was in favor of the war in Ukraine but who has become an outspoken critic of the military leadership and, more recently, of Putin himself. In some ways, Girkin has a lot in common with Yevgeny Prigozhin. Like Prigozhin he has a following and has gone from supporter to critic. Today, Girkin was arrested for extremist activities.

Russian security services have detained Igor Girkin — a supporter of the war against Ukraine who has become a vocal critic of how the Kremlin has handled the invasion — and accused him of extremism.

Girkin, a prominent nationalist and former FSB intelligence officer who led Russia’s covert invasion under the guise of support for separatists in eastern Ukraine in 2014, became increasingly scathing in his criticism of Moscow’s handling of the full-scale campaign launched nearly 17 months ago, and has called for Vladimir Putin to step down as Russian president.

Russian state media on Friday showed pictures of Girkin in a Moscow courtroom behind a glass wall. It said the state was accusing Girkin of “public calls to carry out extremist activities on the internet”

The irony of Girkin of all people being arrested for extremist activities shouldn’t be lost. Girkin is famous in Russia because he was involved in the invasion and annexation of Crimea. He played a direct role in the shooting down of Flight 17 which killed 298 people.

A Russian Army veteran and former intelligence officer, Mr. Girkin helped Russia illegally annex Crimea in 2014 and then led pro-Russian separatist militias in eastern Ukraine. With his ruthless discipline, he earned a reputation as a decisive commander.

In May 2014, he was appointed defense minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic, a separatist entity that claimed the territory of the Donetsk region of Ukraine. He was dismissed a few months later after Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people aboard.

Last November, a court in the Netherlands found Mr. Girkin and two others guilty of murder for their roles in the downing of the plane; Mr. Girkin has denied responsibility.

Girkin is almost certainly directly responsible for those deaths but Putin was happy to protect him and have his support when the invasion began last year. Unfortunately for Putin, the war hasn’t gone very well and Girkin hasn’t been willing to pretend otherwise. Lately he’s been calling on Putin to step down, even calling him a “cowardly bum.”

The day after Wagner’s brief insurrection ended, on June 25, he said that if Putin “is not ready to take the leadership over the creation of war-ready conditions” in Russia, “then he really needs to transfer the powers, but legally, to someone who is capable of such hard work.”

But the final straw for Putin may have come on Tuesday, when Girkin called the president a “lowlife” and a “cowardly bum” in a blistering post on his Telegram channel.

“For 23 years, the country was led by a lowlife who managed to ‘blow dust in the eyes’ of a significant part of the population. Now he is the last island of legitimacy and stability of the state,” the post read. “But the country will not be able to withstand another six years of this cowardly bum in power.”

Girkin has his own goon squad called the Angry Patriots Club and they are now shocked to learn that there is no free speech or other civil rights in Russia.

Another post on Girkin’s Telegram account, attributed to his “associates,” said that his arrest Friday coincided with an attempt to split the Angry Patriots Club over differing opinions about Wagner and its attempted uprising in Russia in June, which posed the most significant challenge to Putin since he took power more than two decades ago.

Girkin “openly and reasonably criticized the actions of government officials, including the president,” the statement from his associates read. They said that confidence in Russia’s “freedom of speech” was being compromised, and that “processes are taking place in our country that indicate the departure of government representatives from basic values.”

Video of Girkin at some kind of court hearing has been released.

The first footage of a detained Igor Girkin in the Meshchansky Court in Moscow. Girkin is charged with public calls to carry out extremist activities on the internet.

The investigation committee is asking for the arrest of Girkin. pic.twitter.com/OAaW1T8Z7Q

— NOELREPORTS 🇪🇺 🇺🇦 (@NOELreports) July 21, 2023

His friend and supporter has also been arrested after calling for his release.

Girkin’s friend and ally, Pavel Gubarev, who demanded the release of Igor Girkin, has also been arrested. When he got arrested the crowd was shouting “pozor”, shame.

Source: https://t.co/NqC8ia36g7#Russia #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/6rytxXiXb8

— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) July 21, 2023

Girkin is being held while the authorities come up with some excuse for his arrest. He’s facing five years but it’s not as if there’s any legitimate process at work here. Someone from the Kremlin will let the judge know how many years he gets and that will be it. And if he continues to complain he’ll suddenly be found to have violated other laws and will be facing 20 years. This is how Russia operates and Girkin surely knew that before this week.