Russian lawmakers have introduced a bill seeking the death penalty for public officials whose corrupt acts damage the country’s defense capability and national security.
Members of the A Just Russia party filed the proposal in the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament. The measure would create a new criminal offense covering corruption that weakens national defense or endangers public security.
Party leader Sergey Mironov said existing laws distinguish ordinary corruption from treason but do not separately address corrupt acts that directly threaten the state.
“We believe such crimes should be treated the same as espionage and treason because they also constitute a betrayal of national interests,” Mironov said.
The proposed penalty would cover corruption involving defensive infrastructure, military facilities, weapons and ammunition production, and military procurement. Mironov argued that embezzlement in these areas should be classified as treason instead of ordinary corruption.
The bill comes despite Russia’s decades-long moratorium on capital punishment. The country has not carried out an execution since 1996, while the moratorium has remained in place since April 1997.
Capital punishment remains written into Russia’s Criminal Code, but it cannot currently be enforced. The moratorium would have to be lifted or Russia’s legal framework changed before any death sentence under the proposed law could be carried out.
The measure reflects pressure to impose harsher punishment on officials accused of weakening the state during a period of heightened military spending and security concerns.
A similar proposal has been filed in the Philippines. House Bill No. 11211, known as the Death Penalty for Corruption Act, seeks capital punishment for public officials convicted of graft, malversation and plunder.
The two countries differ in their treatment of capital punishment. Russia retains the death penalty in law but suspends its use, while the Philippines formally abolished it in 2006 through Republic Act No. 9346.
