Volgograd court jails three self-proclaimed ‘Soviet citizens’ suspected of extremism

Volgograd’s Central District Court has jailed three local residents — all of whom deny the collapse of the USSR and do not acknowledge the Russian Federation’s statehood — on suspicion of organizing the activities of an extremist group, the press service for the regional court system reported on Thursday, November 19.

The court’s statement maintained that all three suspects belong to an organization that is considered extremist in Russia, but it didn’t disclose the name of the banned group in question. According to the local newspaper Vysota 102, all three suspects are members of a group called the “Union of Slavic Forces of Rus” (otherwise known as “USSR”), which has banned in Russia since 2019. 

According to state investigators, the members of the organization promoted the idea that the Russian Federation is not a state, called for the denial of existing laws, and persuaded people “to oppose the activities of government bodies at all levels.”

There are several organizations in Russia that deny the fact that the USSR ever collapsed. The most famous one is the Union SSR (“Soyuz SSR”) trade union. It’s members consider themselves citizens of the Soviet Union are convinced that they have the right to not pay their housing and utilities bills, and refuse to pay back loans.