A Russian court has sentenced Alsu Kurmasheva, an editor at US state-run Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) to six and a half years in prison for spreading “false information” about the Russian military.
Kurmasheva, a Russian citizen who also holds a US passport, worked for the Tatar-language service of the media outlet, denied any wrongdoing during the trial, which was conducted behind closed doors due to reasons of 'national security.'
She had been living in Prague, where RFE/RL is based, and occasionally traveled to Russia to visit relatives.
The editor was first detained in June 2023 in Kazan and charged with failing to notify the authorities about her dual Russian and American citizenship. She was fined 10,000 rubles ($113) for this offense.
Kurmasheva was detained again in October and charged with failing to register as a “foreign agent.” In December, she was additionally charged under Article 207 of the Russian Criminal Code, which bans the “public dissemination of false information about the Russian Armed Forces.”
According to the news channel RBK, the prosecution argued that “false information” was found in Kurmasheva’s recent book, titled ‘No to War. The 40 Stories of Russians Opposing the Invasion of Ukraine.” The book is a collection of interviews with Russians with an “anti-war stance,” who are speaking out against Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine, according to its description.
RFE/RL President Stephen Capus said that the trial “makes a mockery out of justice,” and has called for Kurmasheva’s immediate release.US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller described Kurmasheva on Monday as “a dedicated journalist who is being targeted by Russian authorities for her uncompromising commitment to speaking the truth and her principled reporting.”
RFE/RL was founded by the CIA during the early stages of the Cold War to spread anti-Soviet propagranda in the Eastern Bloc. It continues to be funded by the US government and to primarily focus on anti-Moscow messaging.
In March 2022, Russia blocked access to RFE/RL, citing “the publication of materials that contain false information about the nature of the special military operation” in Ukraine. Moscow banned the media outlet altogether in February 2024.
Since 2022, the EU has banned several Russian news outlets, including RT and Sputnik. It added more outlets to the list recently.