Russian writer sparks war of words by joining Ukraine rebels

moscow — One of Russia’s best known novelists, Zakhar Prilepin, has sparked a bitter row among top writers by revealing he is now fighting with pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine.

Prilepin is acclaimed for novels drawing on his experiences of serving with Russian forces in Chechnya and as a member of a banned radical nationalist group, and has won some of Russia’s top literary awards.

The shaven-headed writer has been a frequent visitor to the rebel east Ukraine since the start of the conflict in April 2014, acting as a “consultant” to Donetsk rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko.

In an interview with popular tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda last week the 41-year-old revealed he is now the deputy commander of his own battalion, shocking the literary scene.

“I think a writer has a right to

The country’s blogosphere is buzzing. It has divided into factions: those who are for Prilepin and those who are against Life News website

any position,” Prilepin said at a midweek Moscow news conference.

“He can stand with a flag saying peace to the world or he can take up arms.”

For Prilepin, the conflict in Ukraine has seen a major change as he has gone from a member of a banned group fiercely opposed to the Kremlin to supporting the official line.

He was part of the outlawed National Bolshevik Party led by fellow writer Eduard Limonov, which used to see its illegal rallies crushed by riot police, but then supported Moscow’s seizure of Crimea in 2014.

By becoming one of the most high-profile Russians to join east Ukraine’s fighters, Prilepin has prompted outpourings of bile from top literary figures with more liberal views.

Viktor Pelevin, one of the best known post-Soviet writers, wrote on Facebook: “When your books are shit, you have to earn money from terrorism.”

Meanwhile Dmitry Bykov, a poet and writer known for an award-winning biography of Boris Pasternak, told Gazeta.ru that “Prilepin deserves hatred.”

In a comment reported by state television, Vera Polozkova, one of Russia’s best known young Russian poets, wrote on Facebook that she “will open a bottle of the best champagne when they finally blow his... head off.” —