After a trial that marked the latest move in a relentless crackdown on the opposition amid the fighting in Ukraine, a top Kremlin foe was convicted on Monday of treason and denigrating the Russian military and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Vladimir Kara-Murza, Jr., a prominent opposition activist who survived two Kremlin-ordered poisonings, has been imprisoned since his arrest a year ago. He has dismissed the charges against him as political, comparing the judicial proceedings to show trials under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin’s rule. Kara-Murza said in his final statement last week that he is proud of standing up to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ‘dictatorship’ and decision to send troops into Ukraine. The charges against Kara-Murza stem from a speech he gave to the Arizona House of Representatives in March 2022 in which he condemned Russia’s military action in Ukraine. While he was in custody, investigators added the treason charges. Russia passed legislation criminalizing the dissemination of ‘false information’ about its military days after sending troops into Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The law has been used by authorities to stifle criticism of what the Kremlin refers to as a ‘special military operation.’
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