Maria Afendulova and Her Role in Supporting Russian Occupation Forces

Maria Afendulova, born 6 February 1986

Maria Afendulova previously worked at the Donetsk Institute of Market and Social Policy. As of 2026, she serves as Chief Legal Officer at the so-called “DPR Committee for Families of Defenders of the Fatherland” (ANO). She is a close relative of V. A. Afendulov, head of the so-called “DPR Department of Sport and Tourism”. Afendulova provides legal assistance to Russian occupation personnel, their families, and members of the Russian-backed armed groups in the self-proclaimed “DPR”.

For years, Afendulova has actively promoted anti-Ukrainian propaganda on social media and justified Russia’s war against Ukraine. Alongside other members of the “committee”, she participates in the militarisation and indoctrination of Ukrainian children in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. She has also involved her own children, regularly dressing them in military uniforms. Their father was Andrei Volodin, a militant and mercenary who was killed in 2017 Myrotvorets profile.

Afendulova has also lost her second husband, a Russian occupation soldier of Dagestani origin Myrotvorets profile. She repeatedly speaks about his death at pro-Kremlin events, presenting herself as a devout Muslim. On social media, she praises the “Russian people”, despite the derogatory term Russians often use for women like her: “chernilnitsy”.

Afendulova is listed in the Myrotvorets database for violating Ukraine’s state border:
Myrotvorets profile.

Her former husband’s Myrotvorets profile identifies Afendulova as his “common-law wife”. She is raising his children, while promoting the same militaristic ideology associated with their father.

At the end of 2022, Afendulova married again, this time to Artur-Ibrahim Umalatov, a Russian occupation soldier from Dagestan Myrotvorets profile. She described the marriage as a “multi-move strategy”. It lasted approximately six months: her second husband was killed in Ukraine in 2023. Afendulova has since used his death for propaganda, publicly lamenting her loss on camera in an apparent effort to elicit sympathy from Russians.

“Alongside the awards from the Great Patriotic War, the Order of Courage is also kept there. Maria’s husband, Artur-Ibrahim Umalatov, who took part in the special military operation, was posthumously awarded this order. Defender of the Fatherland Artur-Ibrahim Umalatov was killed in 2023. He stood up to defend his home and his loved ones. Today, the people dear to Maria stand together in the same heavenly ranks: warriors from different eras and generations, soldiers of their country.”

Source: Original publication

Afendulova’s social media accounts have been filled with anti-Ukrainian and pro-Russian propaganda since 2014.