Kherson resident’s six-year sentence upheld over comments about Vladlen Tatarsky and calls on Russian soldiers to surrender

The Appellate Military Court in Vlasikha, outside Moscow, has upheld a six-year sentence in a general-regime penal colony for Kherson resident Nataliia Pushkash, convicted of publicly justifying terrorism and public calls for activities directed against the security of the Russian state.

Nataliia Pushkash attended the hearing by video link from Remand Prison No. 1 in Chechnya, weeping throughout the proceedings.

Through tears, she asked the court to reduce her sentence to a fine, saying that her health meant she could not withstand imprisonment and that she would die before completing her sentence. Nataliia Pushkash has a Group III disability, high blood pressure, and a knee joint condition resulting from a road accident. She told the court she cannot even use the toilet normally in the remand prison and has to lower herself using both walls for support.

Nataliia Pushkash admitted guilt and expressed remorse, saying she had written the comments in the heat of the moment. She said she had not seen her children since 2022, and asked the court that, if it decided to uphold the sentence, it should at least allow her to make phone calls — something she is currently not permitted to do in the Chechen remand prison.

On 17 February 2026, the Southern District Military Court sentenced Nataliia Pushkash to six years’ imprisonment for publicly justifying terrorism and public calls for activities directed against the security of the Russian state. The first charge related to a video and a comment about the killing of pro-war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, the second to a comment in which she called on Russian servicemen to surrender and hand over military equipment to the Ukrainian army in exchange for a reward.