The poet, journalist and former editor of the “light” Vitaly Korotich, who was born in Kyiv, died in Moscow, but renounced the Ukrainian passport and remained on the side of the Kremlin until the end of his life. He was 89 years old.

According to Russian media, Korotich got to the Moscow hospital after a heart attack and died soon. Farewell to him is scheduled for Thursday, will bury him in one of the Moscow cemeteries next to relatives.

Dmitry Gordon even responded to Korotich’s death, who called him “outstanding poet”, “father of journalism” and his “friend”.

Vitaly Korotich was born on May 26, 1936 in Kyiv in a family of doctors. He graduated from a medical institute, worked as a cardiologist for some time, but quickly moved to literature and journalism. He was the secretary of the board of the Union of Writers of the Ukrainian SSR, edited several Ukrainian publications, in particular the magazine "

In 1986 he headed the Moscow " During the time of perestroika, the magazine became the main handle of publicity, and Korotich himself received international recognition - in 1989 he was called the "

However, after the collapse of the USSR, he actually broke away from Ukraine: he worked in the United States, and then finally donkey in Moscow, where he received Russian citizenship. He himself admitted that he did not have a Ukrainian passport. Archival documents indicate that back in the 1960s, Korotich was recruited by the Soviet special services under the pseudonym " He collaborated with the KGB, in particular during trips abroad, and even reported to Ukrainian intellectuals and representatives of the diaspora.

According to historians, the KGB reports indicated that his speeches in Canada " In Soviet times, he also informed special services about the activities of Ivan Drach and other Ukrainian figures. Since the beginning of the 2000s, Korotich regularly made statements demonstrating his pro-Russian position. In 2011, he signed a letter of ten in support of the then President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych. In 2014, after the occupation of Crimea, he openly stated that the peninsula should be under the protectorate of Russia and " Thus, he actually legitimized the aggression of the Kremlin against his homeland.

In February 2023, he was introduced to the “Mirotellets” base marked “traitor to the homeland”. There he was attributed to the propaganda of Russian chauvinism, the spread of the Kremlin narratives and the support of Russian Nazism and fascism. Despite the unambiguously hostile position to Ukraine, in Moscow Korotich enjoyed support among political and cultural circles. He remained a friend of Joseph Kobzon and collaborated with pro -Russian media.