Russia Letter of protest against Russian parliamentarians at meeting in Geneva
In an open letter to the President of the National Council, the President of the Council of States and Federal Councillor Cassis, exiled Russians are protesting against the participation of individual Russian members of parliament with close ties to Putin at the Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly in Geneva.
20.10.2025, 22:32
20.10.2025, 22:38
SDA
"The presence of the Putin elite in the delegation is a snub to the principles of peace, democracy, the rule of law and Switzerland's neutrality," reads the letter from the Russia of the Future - Switzerland Association to National Council President Maja Riniker, President of the Council of States Andrea Caroni and the Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), Ignazio Cassis.
This "Putin elite" includes Konstantin Kosachev, who systematically promotes propaganda for a war of aggression, Pyotr Tolstoy, who was expelled from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for war rhetoric, and Leonid Sluzki, a supporter of anti-democratic laws.
As they are incapable of constructive dialog, they are merely using the platform of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, whose meeting in Geneva continues until Wednesday, to feign "legitimacy" in the West. "We strongly protest against the misuse of humanitarian and parliamentary forums for war propaganda and to legitimize belligerent aggression," reads the open letter from Russia of the Future - Switzerland.
The association of exiled Russians is calling for Switzerland to take a clear stance against the aggressive rhetoric of the aforementioned Russian members of parliament and for the voices of the Russian opposition in exile, who are campaigning for democratic development in Russia, to be integrated. It also calls for the participation of the Russian opposition in the official assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
Putin's penal camps as under Stalin
In Russia itself, there has been no effective opposition since President Vladimir Putin has not allowed any critical statements against his so-called special operation or other controversial issues, especially since the military invasion of Ukraine he ordered in February 2022. People who do not comply are rendered harmless in prison camps for years or even decades, just like in Stalin's time.
Putin often has compatriots he does not like poisoned abroad. The autocrat, who had the constitution changed in order to extend his term of office and, according to Western observers, is holding on to power by means of rigged elections, has been wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague as a war criminal since March 2023.
