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Russian actor Artur Smolyaninov faces criminal charges over 'anti-Russian' interview

Russian actor Artur Smolyaninov, who starred in the 2005 film "The 9th Company" about the Soviet Union's ill-fated military campaign in Afghanistan, said in an interview last week that he would fight for Ukraine, not Russia, if he had to take part in the conflict. The Investigative Committee said on Monday it had launched a criminal case against Smolyaninov after he took part in an interview with a "Western publication", but did not provide further details.

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Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, dozens of actors and artists have fled abroad in fear of breaching the country's tough new laws on spreading "misinformation" about the war in Ukraine or discrediting the Russian army.