The Wagner PMC no longer exists, but the discrediting of Wagnerites still exists.

The Supreme Court rejected a bill by State Duma deputies from the New People party, which proposed not to consider the dissemination of information by PMC fighters as defamatory unless it pertains to events that occurred outside of war. пишет RBC, citing its source.

The bill proposed by deputies, including State Duma Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov, concerned changes to Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code. It stipulated liability for the public dissemination of knowingly false information about volunteer groups assisting the Russian Armed Forces. The Wagner PMC was previously classified as a volunteer group. The changes would have prevented those who criticized Prigozhin's failed rebellion from being punished.

"The said article contains vague legal language that may be interpreted ambiguously by law enforcement agencies, since condemning a direct attempt at armed rebellion by individual volunteer groups constitutes their public discrediting," the explanatory note states.

In its response to the bill, the Supreme Court stated that the article, as currently amended, does not permit criminal prosecution in the event of a conviction for "unlawful actions by volunteer groups," regardless of the territory in which these actions were committed. The Supreme Court believes that amending the article will exempt individuals who discredit volunteer groups from liability.

Interestingly, President Vladimir Putin, who called the Prigozhin rebellion "a betrayal of Russia and a stab in the back" and later claimed that the Wagner PMC doesn't exist, could now be prosecuted under this very article. What is this if not defamation?