We express our deep concern regarding the documentary film "Russians at War" by Canadian director of Russian origins Anastasia Trofimova, which premiered at the Venice Biennale and is scheduled to be shown at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF)
The film, which attempts to explain Russia's genocidal and aggressive war against Ukraine, has received $340,000 from the Canadian Media Fund, which is financed by the Canadian government. It is unacceptable for a film that seeks to justify Russian soldiers who are responsible for well-documented atrocities committed by Russian forces in Ukraine, and funded by Canadian taxpayers, to make a shameful march through Canadian cinemas.
About the Director: Anastasia Trofimova
Anastasia Trofimova is a Russian-Canadian director and the creator of the documentary film "Russians at War." During the filming, she visited Russian military units engaged in combat against Ukraine. Anastasia Trofimova was likely present in temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, violating Ukrainian laws.
Anastasia Trofimova was born in Moscow, Russia, and is a Canadian citizen. She studied at the University of Toronto (Sheridan College) from 2004 to 2009 in the Faculty of Communication, Culture, and Information Technology, and graduated from the University of Amsterdam in 2021 with a master's degree in International Relations.
After graduating from the University of Toronto, she worked as a freelancer for various international news outlets and television channels, conducting investigations into assorted issues (human trafficking, slavery, counterterrorism, etc.), which led her to visit several countries, including those with ongoing conflicts such as Kosovo, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and others.
From September 2014 to August 2020, Anastasia Trofimova worked at the Russian propaganda agency Russia Today. She held positions as a documentary director, producer, and camerawoman, producing documentary films. (Canada has imposed sanctions on RT’s editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan, who is described as a "central figure in Russian government propaganda," responsible for "actions and policies that undermine the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine").
Russian soldiers are responsible for numerous severe war crimes of the 21st century. The world was shocked by the barbaric acts committed in Bucha, where innocent civilians were brutally executed, and their bodies left on the streets. Hundreds of mass graves were discovered in Izium, many containing the bodies of tortured civilians. Mariupol, once a thriving city, was reduced to ruins, with thousands of civilians trapped and systematically murdered. According to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, more than 141,000 war crimes have been registered since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Just today, CNN published irrefutable evidence of Russian soldiers cold-bloodedly executing Ukrainian prisoners of war. Moreover, there is incontrovertible evidence that Russia is abducting Ukrainian children, illegally deporting and "adopting" them into Russian families in a systematic attempt to erase their Ukrainian identity.
These are not isolated incidents but part of a calculated and ruthless military machine. These atrocities are committed under the orders of Russian war criminals who are fully aware of their actions. They know exactly whom they are killing and what they are destroying; they deliberately board planes and press buttons to launch ballistic missiles at civilian cities. Shockingly, Canadian government funds were used to finance the production of the film "Russians at War." It is unthinkable that the funds of a country that stands steadfastly with Ukraine in the darkest hour of our shared history are now used to create a film that humanizes and legitimizes the very forces committing genocide against the Ukrainian people. This is an affront to the values of freedom, democracy, and justice cherished by Canada and Ukraine.
The Canadian Centre for the Development of Democracy in Russia calls on all responsible parties to reconsider supporting this film, prevent its further promotion, and stand by Ukraine as Canada has always done. Furthermore, we strongly urge a thorough audit to verify the use of Canadian government funds in the production of this documentary film. We sincerely hope that the film will be withdrawn from screening and that the crimes committed by Putin's military machine will never be silenced in Canada.
Sincerely,
Kirill Lyagushev (Canada)
Permanent Representative in Canada of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
President of the Canadian Centre for the Development of Democracy in Russia.
Ilya Ponomarev, Member of Russian State Duma, 2007 – 2016 (5th and 6th seating), chairman of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Andrey Illarionov, member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies, researcher at the Center for Security Policy of the United States, expert at the Ukrainian Institute of the Future analytical center.
Alexander Osovtsov, member of the Moscow City Council (1990-1993), member of Russian State Duma (1st seating, 1993-1997), member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Olga Kurnosova, member of the Leningrad City Council (21st seating, 1990-1993), member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Natalia Aleksandrovskaya, member of Moscow City Council (1990-1993), member of Moscow City Duma (1993-1997), member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Petr Tsarkov, vice chair of Council of deputies of Krasnosel’sky district of Moscow, 2017-2022, member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Vitaliy Skojbeda, member of the Leningrad City Council (21st seating, 1990-1993), member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.
Vasily Tsependa, member of the Executive Committee of the Congress of People’s Deputies.