Support The Moscow Times!

Liberal Democratic Party Declares War on Ponomaryov

The Liberal Democratic Party on Wednesday said it would pursue A Just Russia Deputy Ilya Ponomaryov across the country for his accusations that Vladimir Zhirinovsky plagiarized his Ph.D. dissertation, a news report said.

In February, Ponomaryov appealed to the Prosecutor General to strip Zhirinovsky of his Duma seat, accusing him of plagiarizing and falsifying his Ph.D. dissertation. In turn, Zhirinovsky asked to file libel charges against Ponomaryov.

During a plenary session of the State Duma on Wednesday, Vladimir Ovsyannikov, a Liberal Democratic Party deputy, openly warned that his party would make a point to disturb Ponomaryov's peaceful existence, RIA-Novosti reported Wednesday.

"We declare Mr. Ponomaryov a persona non grata in all corners of our country. Our political offices and our party's organizations will greet him with warm embraces," he said. "So, I don't know where he will be comfortable within the Russian Federation, since he so often travels around and incites people to take to the streets."

Ponomaryov responded by asking the Duma speaker to condemn such attacks and to deprive the Liberal Democratic Party of the right to speak, saying he considers the statements a physical threat.

"We see a very disturbing trend: From one meeting to the next, insults are constantly directed from this party at our party, and nobody is stopping these statements," Ponomaryov told Naryshkin.  

In response, Naryshkin said he did not see Ovsyannikov's statement as a physical threat but simply as "political criticism," adding that Ponomaryov himself "always supported political criticism. Right? Thanks."

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysiss and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more