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Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched criminal proceedings against a prominent journalist who heads a publication in neighboring Latvia providing critical coverage of the three-year-old conflict in Ukraine. The Moscow branch of the committee, which deals with major criminal cases in Russia, said Tuesday that it had opened the case against Russian-born Galina Timchenko, co-founder and head of the Meduza publication. Meduza, which reports in detail on Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor, said in an announcement posted online that Timchenko faced six years in prison if convicted. The committee said the case was based on organizing the activities of an “undesirable organization” and posting videos “to foment protest sentiment and to involve the public in the activities” of such an organization. Institutions deemed “undesirable” on grounds that they threaten Russia’s constitutional order can be subject to fines or orders to dissolve. Timchenko, who had previously headed up prominent publications inside Russia, was last year declared a “foreign agent,” a designation that carries negative Soviet-era connotations and imposes difficult bureaucratic requirements. Hundreds of Russian nationals have had the designation imposed on them. Since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022, parliament has approved legislation cracking down on dissent in the country, including fines and prison terms for discrediting or spreading false information about the army.
