Russian court condemned Nawalny confidante Wolkow to 18 years in prison

Russian court condemned Nawalny confidante Wolkow to 18 years in prison

Litauen, Land - A Russian court sentenced Leonid Wolkow, a confidante of the late opposition leader Alexej Nawalny, to 18 years in prison. This reported Oe24 . The verdict was made on Wednesday after Wolkow was guilty of committing dozens of charges, including the spread of false information about the war in Ukraine and the justification of terrorism. The decision is not yet final.

Wolkow, who currently lives in Lithuania, ironic reacted to the judgment and the finance of two million rubles, which corresponds to around 22,000 euros. In a telegram channel, he commented that the fine was less than expected, but he was prohibited from using the Internet for ten years. Wolkow played a central role in Nawalny's anti-corruption Foundation (FBK), which tried to uncover high-ranking corruption. This organization has been classified and persecuted as "extremist" in Russia.

under pressure in exile

Wolkow sees itself not only exposed in Russia, but also in exile. In 2024 he was attacked in Lithuania and in April of the same year the police searched his parents' home in Russia. His father was interrogated by the Russian security authorities, the FSB for several hours.

The conviction of Wolkow is part of a more comprehensive repression against Nawalny's supporter. Since Nawalny's death in February 2024 in a criminal colony, the Russian government has strengthened its measures against opposition politicians. In January 2024, three former lawyers from Nawalny were sentenced to prison terms of up to five and a half years. In April 2024, four journalists received five years in prison each because they had worked with Nawalny's forbidden organization.

the persecution of oppositional

Another prominent name in this context is the opposition politician Lew Schlossberg. A house arrest that lasted two months recently was imposed because he was accused of discrediting the military. Schlossberg, who is considered the leading member of the liberal Jabloko party, described the Ukraine conflict as a "bloody chess game". If he is convicted, he threatens up to five years in prison.

Repression against the opposition in Russia is not new. The history of the Russian opposition shows that dissidentism often thrives in a climate of persecution and threats. The majority of the Russian dissidents were not involved in a national liberation struggle, but focused on specific topics such as human rights that combined various movements as a central idea. These historical developments still shape the understanding of the political landscape in Russia, where the persecution of critical voices is a lasting reality, as exactly Dissidente.eu