Moscow, Russia. The Kremlin said on Friday it would look into a viral video appeal to President Vladimir Putin by a military veteran who accused Russian commanders in Ukraine of torturing and murdering soldiers for not carrying out what he described as “suicidal orders.”
Kremlin response
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin had not yet reviewed the appeal, which was posted on Instagram, but said it appeared to contain “strange wording.”
Asked about the video by reporters on a conference call, Peskov said: “You know, we were indeed told that such an appeal exists, but we haven’t had a chance to look at it yet, so I wouldn’t want to comment on it.”
“But judging by what you’ve said, it contains some rather strange wording, so we need to look at it first,” he said.
Claims in the video
The post by veteran Alexander Lunin did not provide evidence and did not identify any alleged victims or perpetrators. It received more than 12 million views in 24 hours.
In the video, Lunin alleged that thousands of Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine were being held in pits for refusing to carry out what he called “stupid or suicidal orders” or for refusing to hand over money to their commanders.
He also alleged that such soldiers were tortured before being killed and that commanders concealed the incidents by reporting them as missing in action.
Background on the veteran
Instagram is banned in Russia and can only be accessed there through a virtual private network.
Before the video appeal, Lunin was largely unknown to most Russians. He lives in Russia’s Voronezh region.
It was unclear whether Lunin was acting on his own behalf or, as he suggested, representing broader forces.
Threat in the appeal
Lunin recorded the video wearing combat fatigues and multiple medals. He said that if he did not receive a personal audience with Putin on live television soon, the army would turn their guns on the Kremlin.
