Alexander Skobov, a Russian hero
- Pour l'Ukraine
- Apr 13
- 6 min read
Opinion piece published in Le Monde, dated April 13, 2025, under the title "In Russia, Alexander Skobov is paying a huge price for speaking out loud and clear"
Alexander Skobov was sentenced on March 21 by a military court in Saint Petersburg to 16 years in prison for "apology for terrorism" and " participation in the activities of a terrorist community ." In reality, this was for his opposition to the war against Ukraine.
Skobov worked for many years as a history teacher in a high school. Like Samuel Paty and Dominique Bernard in France, his name has become a symbol of resistance against darkness.
Skobov is a dissident whose story of fighting against totalitarianism began at the age of 19, during the Brezhnev era. He experienced prison and punitive psychiatric hospitals.
Skobov is a political commentator and thinker who has delivered an accurate and lucid analysis of the nature of Putin's Russian regime, calling for resolute resistance at a time when many, in Russia as in the West, were still clinging to illusions.
Skobov refused emigration to remain true to himself, to fight his last battle and to fulfill a duty of solidarity with the young heroes of the resistance — those who went to fight in the ranks of the Ukrainian armed forces or who were sent to a camp for sabotage actions in Russian territory.
Skobov is a publicist who, unlike the majority of his colleagues in the so-called independent Russian media, refused on principle to submit to the repressive laws restricting freedom of expression well before 2022. Rejecting self-censorship, Skobov called annexation annexation, aggression aggression, and Putin the new Hitler. At his trial, he also refused to play by the rules: " I do not recognize or respect your court. " He railed against " This ruling clique that reeks of corpses: in the preparation, initiation, and conduct of a war of aggression, in the war crimes in Ukraine, in the political terror in Russia, in the corruption of my people," before concluding by shouting, " Glory to Ukraine! "
Skobov is doing everything in his power to ensure that the "values of 1945" in Europe are not abandoned without a fight. He opposes any " normalization " of the unacceptable, advocates for a total military defeat and the " dismantling of Nazi Russia ," argues for deep strikes into Russian territory, for direct Western participation in the war alongside Ukraine, and for an armed struggle against Putin's tyranny within Russia.
Skobov's writing demonstrates the Nazi nature of the Putin regime
"Much of my writing aims to demonstrate the Nazi nature of the Putin regime, with which any peaceful coexistence is, in principle, impossible."
"The goal of all my speeches was, and still is, to achieve a radical expansion of military assistance to Ukraine, up to and including the direct participation of NATO armed forces in combat operations against the Russian army. To achieve this goal, I refused to emigrate and deliberately went to prison. From there, my words resonate more strongly and carry more weight."
Skobov was arrested a year ago. Today, we are witnessing—in his own words—" a vile attempt at a purely imperialist alliance between two predators ." As the catastrophe unfolds at a speed exceeding all expectations, Skobov's act takes on its full meaning. His unwavering inner logic is perfectly suited to this historical moment, when " this world is shattering under the blows of two villains attacking it in concert ." It is an action against cowardice, procrastination, and childish chatter.
By choosing to face certain death, Skobov hopes to be heard: " Europe, you have been betrayed. Wake up, and fight for your world. "
For speaking out, Skobov is paying a huge price. And we must understand this: our freedom, our convictions, the future of our children must be defended through struggle.
" The future is not written ," he reminded his daughter in a letter shortly before the verdict. " This is a battle. And even if, at some point in history, we lose a round, the fight continues. "
Today, there are at least 1,500 political prisoners in Russia, probably more. Skobov is a true hero; Europe must not abandon him, but defend him and claim him as one of its own.
Contributions, analyses, and a profile of Alexandre Skobov can be found here on Desk Russia
A 1979 article published in Le Monde recounts the beginnings of Alexandre Skobov:
Alexander Skobov, a young Soviet activist, was at the age of 21 one of the leading figures of a "left-wing opposition" in Leningrad in the late 1970s. Co-editor of the dissident journal "Perspectives," he organized a commune where students and intellectuals gathered to advocate for democratic and pluralist socialism. Arrested in October 1978, Skobov was declared "not criminally responsible" after a forced psychiatric examination at the Serbsky Institute in Moscow, a common Soviet method of repression against dissidents. His trial was scheduled to begin on April 16, 1979, in his absence. His associate, Arkady Tsurkov, was sentenced to five years in a strict-regime labor camp for "anti-Soviet propaganda."
This opinion piece is led by:
Galia Ackerman, historian, editor-in-chief of Desk Russia
Dany Cohn-Bendit , former Member of the European Parliament
Stéphane Courtois , historian
Michel Eltchaninoff, philosophe
Raphaël Glucksmann , Member of the European Parliament (Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats)
Romain Goupil, filmmaker
Luba Jurgenson , teacher, writer and historian
Jonathan Littell , writer
Ariane Mnouchkine , director
Pierre Raiman , historian, co-founder of the association "For Ukraine, for their freedom and ours!"
Françoise Thom , historian
Signatories
Academics
Jean-Loup Bourget, Professor Emeritus at the École Normale Supérieure
Bernard Bruneteau , professor emeritus of universities
Olga Camel , Professor Emeritus
Laurent Coumel , lecturer-researcher (INALCO, Paris)
Didier Coureau , Professor of Film Studies, University of Grenoble Alpes
Nicolas Ellison, anthropologist
Claire Kaiser , lecturer and researcher - Bordeaux-Montaigne University. Member of PLU and other Franco-Ukrainian associations
Jean-Pierre Gazeau , Professor Emeritus, University of Paris Cité
Cédric Gossart , researcher
Jean-Yves Guérin , professor of French literature at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University
Jacques Joly , university professor
Bertrand Lambolez , researcher
Jacques Larrieu , professor emeritus of universities
Yurii Latysh , Doctor of History, Visiting Professor at Londrina State University, displaced person originally from Ukraine
Gérard Lauton , university professor (UPEC)
Sylvie Lindeperg , historian, professor at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
Aude Merlin , professor of political science
Yann Moulier Boutang , Professor Emeritus of Economics, Alliance Sorbonne University, UTC
Véronique Nahoum-Grappe , anthropologist
Laure Neumayer , professor of political science
Georges Nivat, university professor
Alexis Nuselovici , Professor Emeritus, Aix-Marseille University
Mireille Piot , professor emeritus
Alain Rabatel , Professor Emeritus of Language Sciences, Claude Bernard University Lyon 1
Sylvie Rollet , Professor Emeritus, President of For Ukraine, for their freedom and ours!
Emmanuel Siety , lecturer-researcher
Emmanuel Wallon, Professor Emeritus of Political Sociology
Members of Parliament
Constance Le Grip , Member of Parliament, Vice-President of the France-Ukraine Friendship Group and Secretary of the France-Russia Friendship Group.
Initial signatories
Esra Aykin , author, teacher, citizen of the world
Vera Ammer , translator; member of MEMORIAL Deutschland
Geneviève Andueza , advisor to the mayor of Bordeaux, retired
Reynald Beaufort , retired, former manager of a news website
Yulia Berezovskaya , Russia Desk
Cécile Berger , Atsem
Erik Bessmann , research engineer
Etienne Boillet , Senior Lecturer
Claudie Bourgaux , retired CNRS researcher
Chantal Bourry , author
Marie Bret , Honorary Professor
Bernard Bret , University Professor (retired)
Laurence Brihaye , retired from the national education system
Mr. Bruter , retired
Géraldine Cerf de Dudzeele, psychologist, psychoanalyst , vice president of CIPA
Anne & Laurent Champs-Massart , authors (literature)
Cyprien Challine , research
Marc Chaudeur , writer, translator
Julie Chaumette , artist
Marie-France Clerc, author
Philippe Cuinier , formerly Director of Economic Development and Higher Education
Frédéric Dejean , forester
Alexandra Denis , psychoanalyst
Lucien Doljac , retired professor
Marie Dupuy Cherrier , retired teacher
Alain Eraly , professor
Patrick Erard , author
Armand Farrachi , writer
Sylvie Finkelstein , translator
Fabienne Gillmann , visual artist
Elisabeth Godart-Benard , psychoanalyst
Olga Grun , Professor
Hervé Hajnoczy , travel advisor
Catherine Hatinguais , translator
Beatrix Kersten , translator
André Klarsfeld , deputy secretary of the association For Ukraine, for their freedom and ours!
Laurent Jolissaint de Sepibus , professor of engineering
Nicole Joskowicz , retired
Christophe Kopp, doctor
André Lange , co-founder of the Diderot Committee
Martine Laroche , retired teacher
Joanna Lasserre, architect and urban planner , president of the Association for the Defense of Democracy in Poland
Anne Laurent, translator
Olivia Lumbroso , primary school teacher
Damien Marguet , lecturer
Florent Murer , president of Kalyna
Michel Picard, retired CNRS researcher
Patrick Puges , graduate of Polytechnique
Bernard Randoin , retired (scientific researcher)
Antoine Rault , playwright and novelist
Philippe Raynal , teachers
Yannis Roger , musician and photographer
Michel Rostain , writer
Philippe Le Roux , regional representative for Place publique Centre-Val de Loire
Emmanuel Roy , dance teacher
Antoine Sabbagh , historian
Pascale Seydoux , teacher
Gisèle Sztokman , professor
Gérard Tancman , retired professor
Sylvie Thomas , retired teacher
Marco MIValdo , poet
Tobie Vatimbella , consultant
Nicolas Vatimbella , writer
Dominique Varma , professor/author/director
Jean Vincent , retired sociologist
Brigitte Wilputte , retired
Othar Zourabichvili , President of the Georgian Association in France
