A veteran who opposed the war in Ukraine died in Novosibirsk
World War II veteran Vladimir Stepanov, who opposed the Russian invasion of Ukraine, died in Novosibirsk at the age of 98. This was reported by local activists in the Telegram channel “Civilian activists of Siberia”.
For more than 10 years, Stepanov constantly participated in protests and, as long as health allowed, almost every Saturday he came to Lenin Square in Novosibirsk, where traditional pickets are held.
The first time the police detained him was in 2010, and the last time – in June 2022 – for a request to investigate the theft of municipal apartments by city hall officials. After Stepanov spoke twice on the Internet against the war in Ukraine, the police threatened: “You will continue – and age will not help.”
- Vladimir Stepanov was born in Zabaikalsky Krai in 1925. At the age of 17, he volunteered for the war. He was a participant in the Kuril landing operation, during which almost nine thousand Soviet soldiers defeated the Japanese army and captured the Kuril Islands. Stepanov’s service continued even after the war, he was promised to be demobilized in 1948, but was released from the army only in 1950.
- From 1950 to 2000, Stepanov worked as a geologist. With geological parties, he traveled through Primorye, Transbaikalia, Buryatia, and Kamchatka, looking for oil, gold, and gems.
