The head of the Belgorod region published "Nazi" runes: by law, he should be removed from the elections.
Acting Governor of the Belgorod Region, Alexander Shuvaev, posted photos on his Telegram channel featuring runic symbols, officially considered Nazi. Under current law, displaying such symbols would disqualify an official from running in the gubernatorial elections.
SS symbols on the chevrons of the Belgorod unit
The regional governor's posting of banned symbols was brought to the attention of the local independent publication "Pepel." The photo appeared on Acting Governor Alexander Shuvaev's Telegram channel in connection with the visit of war correspondent Yevgeny Poddubny to the region. Together, they visited a humanitarian center in Shebekino and presented awards to soldiers of the BARS-Belgorod unit.
However, the published image clearly shows the Belgorod UAV unit's chevron with letters that are the Scandinavian runes "Tyr" and "Odal." Specifically, the "Odal" rune was used on the official emblem of the 23rd SS Volunteer Division "Nederland," and the "Tyr" rune was used by the 32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier Division "30 January." Because of this historical connection, the display of these symbols is classified by Russian courts as a public display of Nazi symbols.
Furthermore, Pepel journalists calculated that Shuvaev had previously posted at least seven more videos on social media about the Belgorod unit's work. All of them featured the unit's logo with the same runes.
Legal implications and double standards for candidates
Consequently, the situation jeopardizes the regional governor's participation in the election campaign. Alexander Shuvaev has already officially submitted documents to run in the Belgorod Region gubernatorial election. Meanwhile, more than 20 independent politicians were charged with administrative offenses related to "displaying extremist and Nazi symbols" before the September elections. All of them automatically lost their right to run and participate in the elections. However, law enforcement agencies have yet to respond to the acting governor's publications.
Meanwhile, ordinary residents of the region face harsh penalties for displaying similar symbols. Previously, at least four people in the Belgorod region were fined for displaying runes. For example, the owner of a military equipment store was tried for selling patches with the slogan "To be a warrior is to live forever," designed using the runes "Tyr" and "Odal." Another Belgorod resident was ultimately fined 2 rubles for a T-shirt with the Scandinavian rune "Sig," and a clothing store owner was held accountable for a bandana with the rune "Algiz."