The ‘queen of Soviet pop music’ could be labelled as a foreign agent, making her an enemy of the Kremlin.
Alla Pugacheva, known across generations for hit ‘Million Scarlet Roses’ and film ‘The Woman who Sings’ has expressed disgust with the Ukraine war.
In 2022, she said the war was burdening ordinary people and turning Russia into a pariah, and earlier this month, the 74-year-old said that no normal person would return to Russia.
Now Russian ‘activist’ Vitaly Borodin has submitted an official request to recognise Pugacheva as a foreign agent.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had heard no official statements about the issue and Pugacheva, thought to be in Cyprus, did not immediately comment.
Officially labelling her a ‘foreign agent’ requires approval from the Kremlin.
A Russian media outlet with close ties to the security services said an official announcement may be made on her 75th birthday on April 15.
Being labelled as a ‘foreign agent’ is often the first sign of serious trouble from authorities in Russia – currently, there are 787 organisations and people listed as such.
The label has negative Soviet-era connotations and its bearers have to place it prominently on all content they publish. They also face arduous financial and bureaucratic requirements.
For many opponents of President Vladimir Putin, though, the designation is considered a badge of honour – evidence they stood up to a leader they cast as a dictator and say has led Russia towards ruin.
Pugacheva came to the attention of Putin supporters for taking six days from Friday’s gun attack on Crocus City Hall to make a comment in public.
Pugacheva was also criticised for apologising to a Tajik singer who wept over the ‘public torture’ of the Tajik suspects detained for the attack.
Pugacheva in 2022 even asked for the state to label her a foreign agent in solidarity with her husband, TV comedian Maxim Galkin, who was put on the list that year.
Pugacheva has in the past been feted by both Putin and his predecessor Boris Yeltsin. When Mikhail Gorbachev died in 2022, she praised the last Soviet leader for allowing freedom and rejecting violence.
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