Lawyer Leonid Solovyov was fined over a post in which he called the war “the worst possible solution.”

The Tverskoy District Court in Moscow fined lawyer Leonid Solovyov 50,000 rubles (approximately US$575) under the article on “discrediting” the army (Part 1, Article 20.3.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences), reports Mediazona. The protocol was drawn up over Solovyov’s post on VKontakte last year, which congratulated Vladimir Putin on his birthday. In the post, the lawyer called the war “the worst possible solution” and wrote that “resources are being burnt up for it, while people become poorer.”

Solovyov did not admit guilt. He told the court that he had written the post deliberately, fully aware of the possible consequences, and emphasised that he was criticising not the actions of Russian soldiers, but Putin’s decision to start the war.

“Some opinions may be declared wrong, but not only do I not repent, I want to say that, understanding the legal risks, I will continue doing what I do,” said Solovyov.

Leonid Solovyov works on political cases: he has represented the interests of Alexei Navalny and has defended Pyotr Verzilov, action artist Pavel Krisevich, and others.