Wives of naval troopers pose in Zapolyarny photo shoot

“I am proud of you! You are my hero and I can’t wait to hear from you!” Lyubov Lebedeva wrote on social media VK in connection with the birthday of her son Mikael in May 2023.

Less than a month later, Mikael Aliev died on the battlefield in Ukraine. On the 3rd of July, he was buried in his home town of Zapolyarny along with fellow soldier Aleksandr Martynov.

The man that was an active boxer and worked at the local nickel plant was only 27 years old.

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Lyubov Lebedeva is one of hundreds of thousands of mothers and wives of Russian men killed in Ukraine. On the 25th of November, she was among the participants in a propaganda photo shoot in Zapolyarny. It was co-organized by the Woman’s Council of the 61st Naval Infantry Brigade, and at least 11 local women participated.

The event was part of a federal initiative called Wives of the Heroes. It has quickly spread across Russia and similar photo-shoots recently took place also in other military towns in the Kola Peninsula.

The events are aimed at strengthening public support for wives of soldiers and their  involvement in public and cultural enlightenment activities, the organisers explain.

As part of the project, wives of servicemen dress up in the uniforms of their husbands and show off their medals and awards.

“The jacket includes a sacred message - it is the burden and responsibility that lays on the shoulders of the women, and at the same time the jacket is big and heavy and gives warmth and protection,” the event organisers say.

A similar event took place in Severomorsk, the Northern Fleet headquarter city, in April. Among the participants was Kristina Krestinina, a mother of three and wife of a warrior.

On a photo, she is seen dressed in a uniform jacket with a medal and an officer hat on her lap.

“Do not forget that you are our hero, that the kids are proud of you, that they have such a strong, brave and courageous father,” an accompanying text reads.

Judging from her VK social media page, Krestinina has background from the Russian Interior Ministry. On her son’s 9-year birthday, she served him a cake decorated with pictures of soldiers, a machine gun and a war knife.

It is not known exactly how many men from the Kola Peninsula that are fighting in Ukraine, but the number is in the thousands. Several hundred have been killed and some of them are from the town of Zapolyarny.

The Barents Observer has the names of at least ten men that lived in the border town ahead of their deployment and death in Ukraine.