In the regions, responsibility is being introduced for showing the operation of air defense and the consequences of “arrivals”
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The legislative assemblies of the Leningrad and Kursk regions introduced administrative responsibility for the publication of photos and videos that help reveal the locations of Russian air defense systems, and also demonstrate the consequences of enemy strikes, including drone attacks. Citizens who violate the imposed ban will face a fine of up to 3 thousand rubles, and legal entities will pay up to 50 thousand rubles. The only exceptions will be those materials that were previously distributed by the authorities themselves.
The first ban was introduced on March 4 by the operational headquarters of the Leningrad region after a series of high-profile UAV attacks on local industrial and infrastructure facilities. It concerns the publication and dissemination of “any information, including photo and video materials that contribute to the disclosure of locations, temporary deployment, organization of service, combat use of forces and means of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, communications system structures, security systems for fuel and energy complex facilities, industry, bridges and port zones”, as well as “the consequences of the use of unmanned aerial vehicles” in the region. Three days later, the document was supplemented with a clause according to which sharing such information is permitted if it comes from Governor Alexander Drozdenko, Vice-Governor Mikhail Ilyin or the Russian Ministry of Defense.
On March 27, the Legislative Assembly of the Leningrad Region adopted amendments to the regional law “On Administrative Offenses”, adding to it an article on non-execution or improper execution of decisions of the operational headquarters. According to the changes made, for citizens who published photos or videos of the “arrival”, as well as in any other way who violated the ban of March 4, liability is provided in the form of a fine from 1 thousand to 3 thousand rubles, for officials – from 10 thousand. up to 20 thousand rubles, and for legal entities – from 20 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. In case of repeated violation within a year, the punishment will be even greater: fines will range from 3 thousand to 5 thousand rubles, from 20 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. and from 50 thousand to 100 thousand rubles. respectively.
The authority to draw up protocols is vested in officials of the operational headquarters and officials of local government bodies. The consideration of cases of administrative offenses is entrusted to justices of the peace. The Legislative Assembly approved the amendments in three readings without discussion.
A similar ban was introduced on March 12 by the operational headquarters of the Kursk region, which is regularly subjected to shelling and attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to the press service of the regional administration, it covers the dissemination “in the media and on any Internet resources of photo and video materials about the deployment and redeployment of the Russian Armed Forces, military infrastructure, critical facilities,” allowing identification of their location. It is also prohibited to disseminate information “about the location of shelling or impact of a projectile, the use of weapons or air defense and drones, if the specified data allows us to identify the type, location, launch or flight path.”
The decision of the headquarters is mandatory for all citizens located in the Kursk region, the press service added. They also drew attention to the fact that materials in the accounts of Governor Roman Starovoit and the regional government “are posted only after coordination with special services, if their publication cannot somehow harm security and be used by the enemy.” On March 27, the Kursk Regional Duma approved amendments to the regional law “On Administrative Offences,” establishing liability for failure to comply with decisions of the operational headquarters. The amounts of fines are completely similar to those adopted in the Leningrad region.
During the discussion of the bill, LDPR deputy Vladimir Fedorov proposed to allocate money from the treasury for all necessary security measures: “There is a regulation that is mandatory, for example, for budgetary institutions. Where will the school director get the money to implement this order? And we will fine him? He also called for punishing officials who are responsible for basements that are not ready to shelter people and for untimely notification during shelling. Chairman of the Regional Duma Yuri Amerev explained that, as in the peace period, supervisory authorities are responsible for monitoring the actions of school principals, but in conditions of increased danger, the operational headquarters must have grounds to force the owners of strategic objects to carry out their instructions: “There must be levers that will help force those on whom does the safety of the population depend?”
Let us recall that the bill establishing administrative and criminal liability for the publication of videos of “arrivals” and air defense operations was previously developed at the federal level. The amendments, prepared by senators back in August last year, provided for severe punishment for violators: citizens would face a fine of up to 50 thousand rubles, and if they violated it again, they would face up to three years in prison. However, the Kremlin eventually became concerned with “the issue of the balance between the protection of information and its freedom,” and the bill was left without movement (see “Kommersant” on March 12).
Other “front-line” regions are in no hurry to adopt the experience of the Kursk region. Thus, the government of the Belgorod region, which is regularly under fire from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, told Kommersant that there are no plans to introduce a ban on the publication of such information, although administrative liability for failure to comply with decisions of the operational headquarters in the region was established back in July 2023. Interlocutors in the governments of the Voronezh and Bryansk regions reported that there are no plans to resort to such fines there either. The administration of the Krasnodar region does not comment on the possibility of introducing such liability, although in December a memo was published on the website of the local operational headquarters, according to which posting “photos and videos of air targets and the operation of air defense systems in messengers and social networks” is prohibited under threat of criminal prosecution.
Finally, the Crimean authorities spent the past year discussing the idea of introducing fines for filming military installations, the consequences of attacks on them, and recording the work of air defenses. Deputies of the Republican State Council even prepared a corresponding legislative initiative, but it did not come to the point of introducing it to the State Duma. A source in parliament told Kommersant that if this issue is not resolved at the federal level, then the Crimean authorities may return to it at the regional level.
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