Hundreds gathered on Tuesday in St. Petersburg and sang a banned song mocking Russian President Vladimir Putin in a rare public protest, according to footage posted on X.
The crowd was singing "Cooperative Swan Lake," which was banned in Russia this past May by the St. Petersburg Prosecutor's Office. The office says the tune "poses a threat to children's health" and "encourages negative attitudes toward government officials, particularly the President of Russia and his supporters."
The song, written by pro-Ukraine rapper Noize MC, draws on the Soviet tradition of airing the ballet "Swan Lake" in times of political upheaval to symbolize regime change.
Its lyrics call for an end to Putin's reign, with lines such as:
"Where have you been for eight years, you [expletive] monsters? I want to watch ballet, let the swans dance. Let your grandpa tremble with excitement for Swan Lake."
Noize MC, 40, whose real name is Ivan Alexeyev, is a vocal critic of the Kremlin living in exile in Lithuania. He was labeled a foreign agent by the Russian government in November 2022.
At the event, 18-year-old Russian singer Diana "Naoko" Loginova was detained after she led the sing-along, and will likely be charged with "discrediting" the Russian military and organizing an unauthorized event in a public place, according to the Kyiv Independent, an English-language Ukrainian news outlet.
In Russia, citizens theoretically have a right to protest, but in practice the government frequently suppresses dissent and imposes strict controls and harsh penalties.
Shortly after invading Ukraine in 2022, Russia adopted a law that criminalizes the spreading of "false information" about its military or the war, carrying potential prison sentences of up to 15 years.
This effectively outlaws any reporting that deviates from the official Kremlin narrative, which refers to the war only as a "special military operation."
Meanwhile, the U.S. response to Russia's war in Ukraine intensified over the weekend.
President Donald Trump on Sunday warned that he may send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine if Moscow doesn't end its war there soon — possibly using that threat to increase the pressure on Putin to compromise.
"If this war does not end, if there is no path to peace in the short term, then the United States, along with our allies, will take the steps necessary to impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression," Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told Ukraine's Western backers at NATO headquarters in Brussels.
"If we must take this step, the U.S. War Department stands ready to do our part in ways that only the United States can do," he said.
Pro-Kremlin Telegram channels criticized the gathering in St. Petersburg, Newsweek reports.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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