Putin's War on Dissent: The Shlosberg Sentencing is a Warning Shot The 11 year prison sentence handed down to Lev Shlosberg, deputy head of the liberal party Yabloko and vocal critic of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, serves as a stark reminder that dissent in Russia comes with a steep price.
Charges of "discrediting" the Russian armed forces and "spreading false information" are little more than a pretext for silencing opposition voices.
The timing of the verdict, just minutes before the Supreme Court rejected Yabloko's appeal against its ban from participating in September's parliamentary elections, is telling.