The ruling political party in Russia has sparked fury after gifting meat grinders to the mothers of soldiers killed in Ukraine, reports say. The appliance has become synonymous with the war due to Vladimir Putin’s so-called meat grinder tactics, which see waves of troops sent forward in an attempt to overwhelm Ukrainian defences.
United Russia’s local branch in the town of Polyarnye Zori, north-west Russia, included meat grinders in gift packages to mothers whose sons were killed in Ukraine, according to photos published on the party’s social media account. The Moscow Times, an independent Russian publication, reports the post drew scathing comments, with users criticising the gift as insensitive. The local United Russia branch reportedly rejected the criticism, claiming the women had chosen meat grinders as gifts.
Mayor Maxim Chengayev said: “The meat grinder was not part of the standard gift set, but one woman asked for it, and of course [party members] could not refuse her.”
United Russia’s Murmansk regional branch later shared a video on social media of one of the mothers thanking the party for a meat grinder, which she described as a “timely gift”.
“I wanted to buy [the meat grinder] for myself, but you gifted me one just in time,” the woman said, according to the Moscow Times.
“I asked you for it, in principle.”
