dpa
Moscow
A Russian regional politician is facing consequences for a pasta-related protest action during President Vladimir Putin’s speech to the nation this week.
Communist member of parliament Mikhail Abdalkin, from the Samara region some 1,000 kilometres south-east of Moscow, posted a video on YouTube after Tuesday’s speech showing him nodding in front of his computer listening to Putin with spaghetti hanging from one of his ears.
In Russian there is the expression "hanging noodles on my ears,” which means something like "you’re lying to me.” Abdalkin also posted the 30-second clip on the Russian social media platform Vkontakte - where he wrote, obviously with some irony, "Full support, I fully agree, great performance.” In an interview, a spokesman for the Communist Party called Abdalkin’s action a "stupidity” and announced an internal party review of the incident.
The Russian Communist Party is actually considered loyal to the Kremlin. Party leader Gennady Zyuganov, for example, praised the "determination” displayed in Putin’s speech.
In the provincial regions of the largest country on earth, in terms of area, politicians who do not belong to the Kremlin’s United Russia party occasionally make critical remarks. Putin delivered his state of the nation address shortly before the first anniversary of Russia’s war against Ukraine. During the nearly two-hour appearance, the 70-year-old Kremlin leader defended the invasion he had ordered and claimed that the West had "unleashed the war.” Internationally - but also by the Russian opposition - large parts of the speech were criticized as pure propaganda.
Abdalkin’s noodle satire was well received by some internet users.
"We need many more people like this to bring about change in Russia,” one man wrote in the YouTube comments.