Opposition Activist And Former Navalny Ally Flees Russia

Ivan Drobotov

Another former member of jailed Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) has left Russia amid an ongoing crackdown against defunct organizations associated with the Kremlin critic that were labeled "extremist" last year.

Ivan Drobotov said on Facebook over the weekend that he was now in Georgia after he removed an electronic bracelet from his ankle that he was ordered to wear by a Russian court last month after he was charged with the creation of a group "violating the rights and privacy of Russian citizens."

The charge was related to Drobotov's work with the opposition movement Vesna (Spring) and not for his past cooperation with the FBK.

"I am in Tbilisi, and I am OK. I will come back to Russia sometime in the future, but for now will be able to see the world and again do something useful," Drobotov wrote on Facebook.

Several associates of Navalny and former activists of his organizations have left Russia after a court in Moscow labeled all organizations associated with Navalny "extremist" in June 2021, effectively outlawing them.