Udaltsov Questioned Over NTV Claims
Published: October 12, 2012 (Issue # 1730)
MOSCOW – Opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov was questioned by investigators Thursday in connection with a documentary accusing him of plotting a revolution in Russia.
“Anatomy of a Protest 2,” which aired last Friday on state-controlled NTV, included footage that it said showed Udaltsov, the leader of the Left Front movement, receiving instructions from Givi Targamadze, the former head of the Georgian parliament’s defense committee and a close ally of President Mikheil Saakashvili, about how to trigger mass riots across the country.
“Udaltsov confired that in summer 2012 he contacted unnamed Georgian citizens, one of who he identified as Georgy Vasilyevich,” the Investigative Committee said in a statement.
It also said Udaltsov acknowledged discussing possible legal resources to fund the Left Front, but not any illegal plans to start a violent revolution.
“I absolutely deny receiving any money and orders from from foreign agencies,” Udaltsov said on Twitter after the questioning.
He has repeatedly said that the documentary was a fake and that he didn’t recall meeting Targamadze.
The NTV documentary said that Targamadze was involved in color revolutions in Georgia and Ukraine. The day after the program was aired, Prosecutor General Yury Chaika ordered an investigation into its claims.
Investigators plan to study the original videos used by the channel to verify its credibility.