Russia's Justice Ministry has added former Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Kunadze, editor in chief of the independent Dovod news website Ilya Kosygin, and political scientist Mikhail Savva to its list of so-called foreign agents, a ministry statement says.
Kunadze, 74, was deputy foreign minister between 1991–93 and then served as ambassador to South Korea between 1993-97 before becoming a political commentator.
He "has been disseminating false information aimed at creating a negative image about the Russian Federation, false information about the decisions made by the public authorities of the Russian Federation and about their policies, and about the actions of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation," the statement said.
It added that Kunadze "systematically participated as an interviewee on platforms provided by foreign agencies."
Independent journalist Kosygin was arrested in April 2021 for covering a protest outside a detention facility where opposition leader Aleksei Navalny was being held at the time.
He also published information about Russian National Guardsmen from the city of Vladimir, east of Moscow, who died in Ukraine.
Political scientist and rights activist Mikhail Savva is a former professor at the Kuban State University and an expert at the Ukrainian Center for Civil Liberties.
Savva moved to Ukraine in 2015 after receiving a first suspended sentence for fraud as authorities were initiating fresh criminal cases against him. Savva and his associates consider all charges as politically motivated.
SEE ALSO: Anti-War Russians Abroad Fear Kremlin Covertly Pressuring Hosts To Send Them BackPolitical scientist and rights activist Mikhail Savva is an expert at the Ukrainian Center for Civil Liberties.
Since 2012, Russia has used its foreign agent laws to label and punish critics of government policies.
It also has been increasingly used to shut down civil society and media groups in Russia since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine.
The law allowed the Justice Ministry to label nonprofit organizations as foreign agents if they receive funding from abroad and are engaged in political activities.
The criteria by which such activities are determined are not clearly defined in the law, allowing authorities to persecute organizations working in the field of education, culture, health, environment protection, and human rights protection.
Subsequently, it became possible to declare media and individuals foreign agents, including those who do not receive foreign funding but are “under foreign influence.” Russian legislation does not specify what exactly should be considered foreign influence.