President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree making all casualties suffered by the Russian military during special operations in peacetime a state secret.
Previously, Russia listed as a state secret only casualties
suffered by the military during wars. The new rules were
published on the government’s legal information website on
Thursday. The same decree classifies the information about people
who Russian special services study as possible candidates for
work as agents. Previously only the information about those who
were approved was a state secret.
Under Federal law on state secrets, disclosing such information
can be punished by prison sentence of up to seven years.
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A member of the State Duma committee for defense, MP Franz
Klintsevich of majority party United Russia called the move a
logical reaction to the changing international situation.
“Disclosing the information about casualties during a special
operation means telling everything about the character of this
operation and forces involved in it. Today this is hardly
justifiable, to say the least,” Klintsevich told RIA
Novosti.
“The international situation is so unstable that a new
conflict can take place anywhere and we must prevent such threats
and when it is possible we should launch preventive measure,
including special operations,” he said.
The decree is in no way connected to the conflict in eastern
Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media. Vladimir
Putin has no intention of initiating a special operation in
Ukraine, he added.
“In this case, relevant departments have deemed this secrecy
regime is in the state’s best interest,” Peskov said.
Kiev and the West have repeatedly accused Moscow of covert
support for anti-government fighters in eastern Ukraine, but have
not provided any solid proof to back up their claims. Russia has
rebuffed all the accusations.
Deputy head of the Russian Institute of Military and Political
Analysis, Aleksandr Khramchkhin, said in comments with the RBC
news site that the Russian move was in line with the generally
accepted practice of foreign nations. “For example, in the
USA all actions of their special forces are an absolute secret,
both in war and in peace. Nothing is known about them,” he
said.
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