Putin's decree could revive Russia's death penalty

An intense national debate about reinstating the death penalty is ongoing in Russia. The head of the Russian Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, suggested that lifting the moratorium on the death penalty would require only a single signature from Vladimir Putin.

The Russian criminal code stipulates five charges punishable by death: attempted murder of a judge, attempted murder of a police officer, attempted murder of a government official, murder under certain aggravating circumstances, and genocide.

In 1997, Russia instituted a moratorium on the death penalty. This was one of the conditions for the country’s accession to the Council of Europe. After Moscow began the war in Ukraine, the Russian Federation was quickly expelled from this organization.

Russia wants to reinstate the death penalty: a Putin decree will suffice. The head of the Russian Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, proposed lifting the moratorium on the death penalty. He stated that implementing this change would require a decree from Putin, according to a report by Nexta on the X platform.

Until now, the prevailing rhetoric in Russia was that lifting the moratorium required a constitutional amendment. This step, however, would need to be preceded by a referendum.

In March of this year, a nationwide debate concerning the reinstatement of the death penalty began in Russia. This was related to the terrorist attacks in Crocus City Hall. At that time, Dmitry Medvedev was very outspoken about the terrorists. "Should they be killed? We must. And so it will be," said the former president of the Russian Federation.

Now the matter is gaining momentum. One politician suggested on Friday that the issue could be resolved with a single signature.

We must consider the possibility of lifting the moratorium on the death penalty. In some cases, it should be applied, and in those cases, I am a supporter of the death penalty, said Alexander Bastrykin at the St. Petersburg Legal Forum session.

Of course, it’s about Vladimir Putin’s signature. Will this really happen? The Russian dictator has been called out. He has not yet responded to this proposal. It would certainly be a very convenient way of using punishment against disobedient citizens who disagree with decisions made by the authorities in the Kremlin.