The Russian Ministry of Justice has added music critic Artemy Troitsky, actor Artur Smolyaninov, defrocked priest Sergey Kirsanov, ex-head of Navalny HQ in the city of Perm Sergey Ukhov, lawyer Anatoly Fursov, TV host Alexander Shelest, and a limited liability company TENES to the list of “foreign agents”.
On Monday, 9 January, Alexander Bastrykin, head of Russia’s Investigative Committee, gave instructions to open a criminal case against Smolyaninov. “In an interview with a Western media outlet Smolyaninov made several remarks aimed against Russia,” the statement of the committee reads. Smolyaninov now faces prosecution for his interview with Novaya Gazeta Europe.