Kremlin spokesman says his son fought in Ukraine

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday said his son Nikolai had taken part in Russia’s offensive in Ukraine, months after being accused of trying to dodge the draft.

“He took this decision. He’s a grown man. Yes, he did indeed take part in the special military operation,” Peskov told reporters, without giving further details.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner private military company, said last week that Nikolai Peskov had fought as part of his forces for six months in eastern Ukraine.

Prigozhin said the 33-year-old Peskov had served under a different name in a unit operating a multiple rocket launcher.

He said he fought “with courage and heroism”.

“Of course, for normal people this is an unusual situation because everyone is used to the fact that the children of the elite are hidden away by their parents,” Prigozhin said in a message released by his press service.

Prigozhin said he had advised the younger Peskov not to serve in the Russian army to avoid being posted at headquarters or being sent as “cannon fodder” to the front line.

Following Prigozhin’s statement, the Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid, published an interview with Nikolai Peskov in which he said he had fought to fulfill his “duty” and had received a medal for his actions.

Six months ago, Nikolai Peskov was accused of trying to shirk enrolment in the Russian army following his comments in a phone-call.

In a video widely distributed across Russian social media, supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny phoned Peskov’s son posing as recruitment officers and ordered him to report for mobilization.

A voice the bloggers said was that of Nikolai Peskov refused to accept the order and said he would “settle this at a higher level”.