Lyudmila Vasilyeva in court in St. Petersburg, 23 May 2025. Photo: Mediazona

A court in St. Petersburg has fined an octogenarian who survived the 900-day Nazi siege of Leningrad as a child 10,000 rubles (€111) for a solo protest that “discredited” the Russian army, independent news outlet Mediazona reported on Friday.

Lyudmila Vasilyeva, 84, was detained in St. Petersburg in February for a one-woman protest marking the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Standing outside the Gostiny Dvor shopping centre in the city centre, she held a small placard reading: “People, let’s stop the war! We are responsible for peace on planet Earth. With love, Lyudmila Vasilyeva, child of the Leningrad siege.”

Dozens of people came to support Vasilyeva during her hearing on Friday, though only two were allowed into the courtroom. During the wait for her verdict, people read poems to each other while huddled in a stairwell, according to those in attendance.

“We all still have to try to live and see the beautiful Russia of the future,” Vasilyeva told reporters after the hearing, as the crowd chanted “Thank you!”

A staunch critic of Vladimir Putin, Vasilyeva is a veteran of the St. Petersburg protest movement and was detained at several anti-war rallies in the city in 2022. Last year, Vasilyeva sought to become the city’s governor, though she was forced to drop out of the race in July after failing to collect the petition signatures needed to register her candidacy.

“As long as there is no peace, nothing good will happen either in Russia or in St. Petersburg,” Vasilyeva said at the time, pledging she would “continue to fight”.

Speaking ahead of her hearing to French public news broadcaster France 24 on Thursday, Vasilyeva stressed that she was unphased by the prospect of being convicted: “I’m 84 years old. I’m not afraid”.