RUSSIA: Orthodox cross on the State emblem: God is with Russia!
By Willy Fautré, director of Human Rights Without Frontiers
HRWF (29.01.2026) – On 29 December 2025, a law came into force in the Russian Federation that enshrined the mandatory presence of Orthodox crosses on the state emblem.
According to Alexander Sidyakin, a member of the State Duma and head of the central executive committee of the pro-presidential party “United Russia,” this decision was taken to answer the “colossal demand for national identity.”
“This is a clear message to the whole world that God is with Russia. And our duty is to be with those who today bear the cross of the fight for the future of the whole country,” he said.
On 9 December 2025, the State Duma adopted in the first reading a bill enshrining the existence of crosses on the coat of arms of the Russian Federation.
The bill, developed by a group of deputies headed by Vyacheslav Volodin, amends Article 1 of the Law “On the State Emblem of the Russian Federation”, supplementing it with a clarification: “Small crowns, a large crown and power are crowned with straight equilateral four-pointed crosses with expanding ends”.
Co-author of the bill, head of the State Duma Committee on the Development of Civil Society, Public and Religious Organizations Yana Lantratova (“Fair Russia“) in an interview with RIA Novosti noted that the state emblem is one of the official symbols, each of its details carries a deep meaning and is a link between the past, present and future.
“In Russian heraldry, the cross is a symbol of supreme power, an emblem of legitimacy and historical continuity. But the lack of description gave rise to the practice of arbitrary exclusion of crosses when depicting the coat of arms, they were erased, replaced with rhombuses, balls or dots. There were also provocations from unfriendly countries, when coats of arms were depicted with a swastika or other symbols. The purpose of our initiative is to protect the state symbol, to eliminate the existing legal gap. Our bill is a step to protect historical memory in the most literal sense,” she added.
On 16 December, the bill was approved in the second, and on 18 December – in the third, final, reading.
On 19 December, the law was approved by the Federation Council, and on 29 December, it was signed by V. Putin.
Recall that earlier the State Duma had already adopted a law on the protection of religious symbols and was considering a bill to impose fines for depicting temples without crosses.
Russia, a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional state
It should be noted that Russia is a multinational state, in which people of different nationalities, cultures and religions live. There are about 190 ethnic groups and more than 20 religious denominations in the country.
Religious groups, according to the law, have the right to their own religious rites, shrines and customs, which may differ significantly from each other. The legislation of the Russian Federation declares respect for the rights and freedoms of all citizens, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation.
It is stated that modern Russia is a secular, multinational and multi-confessional state.
The Constitution and current laws declare the right of citizens to freely choose their worldview – religious, agnostic or atheistic.
Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation stipulates that everyone is guaranteed freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, including the right to profess any religion individually or together with others or not to profess any, to freely choose, have and disseminate religious and other beliefs and to act in accordance with them.
The reality is however very different.
