Non-governmental organization Russian Officers, a supporter of the All-Russia People's Front, has decided to create a party loyal to the Kremlin, the organization's chairman said.
Russian Officers chairman Nikolai Sobolev said he sees large support among people in the region for a new military pro-Kremlin party.
"People in the region tell me, 'Geez, when you, the military, get yourselves together? We will all go to vote for you,'" he said.
The party, to be tentatively called Defenders of the Fatherland, would hold patriotism, family, and Russian education and faith as its highest values and priorities.
He also said the organization would be fiercely pro-Kremlin, following in the steps of the Russian Officers NGO.
"Our committee has supported and will support Vladimir Putin. We participated in rallies in his support at Poklonnaya Hill and Luzhniki," he said, emphasizing that they are not out to "fight the power around the Kremlin, but in fact to develop Russia."
The founding conference of the Defenders of the Fatherland is set for May 27 with the goal of getting up to 100,000 party members. Russian Officers already has about 30,000 supporters, with high representation among former Interior Ministry and Federal Security Service members.
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