Sergey Udaltsov in court. Photo: Novaya Gazeta Europe
A Moscow court has sentenced Russian left-wing politician Sergey Udaltsov to six years in a penal colony after finding him guilty of “justifying terrorism”.
The ruling, delivered on Thursday, relates to a post published on the Left Front website in March 2023 in support of a Marxist circle based in the city of Ufa in Baskhortostan. Earlier this month, members of the group were sentenced to prison terms of between 16 and 22 years for terror offences.
In his post, Udaltsov described the group as “languishing in prison on absurd charges”.
Udaltsov, the leader of Russia’s umbrella left-wing organisation the Left Front, declared an indefinite hunger strike after the verdict, telling the court: “This is a disgraceful ruling. All those who delivered it will be held accountable, I hope. Damn you, you dogs.”
The case against Udaltsov has been under consideration for almost two years, during which time he has remained in custody. He denies any wrongdoing, arguing that Ufa activists were only designated as terrorists after his post was published.
On Thursday, Communist Party State Duma deputies Nina Ostanina and Denis Parfenov spoke in Udaltsov’s defence, independent outlet SOTAvision reported, saying they had never heard Udaltsov make radical or extremist statements.
Udaltsov was a prominent opposition figure in the early 2010s and participated in protests against Vladimir Putin’s return to presidency in 2012. In 2014, he was sentenced to four and a half years in prison for organising what authorities called “mass riots”. He was released after serving three years.
Despite opposing Putin, Udaltsov publicly backed the annexation of Crimea following his release from prison in 2017, and later supported Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, describing his views as “patriotic” left-wing in an interview with independent outlet Holod.
