On 15 September 2023, Russia's Ministry of Justice included political analyst Stanislav Belkovsky and journalist Ilya Shepelin in the foreign agents registry. Kommersant reported this. Besides them, the list also included Yevgeny Kochegin, Kirill Sedov and Yuri Fyodorov.
Grounds for inclusion
According to the ministry, Belkovsky, as per the Justice Ministry's assessment, participated in the creation and dissemination of foreign agents' materials, shaped a negative image of Russia, discredited the military operation in Ukraine and spread inaccurate information about the decisions and policies of the current authorities. It is noted that the political analyst does not reside in Russia.
Shepelin is accused of participating in the creation and dissemination of foreign agents' materials, spreading inaccurate information about the decisions and policies of the authorities, speaking out against the military operation in Ukraine and interacting with foreign agents. He also lives outside Russia.
Other individuals on the list
Yevgeny Kochegin, according to the Justice Ministry, spread inaccurate information about the decisions and policies of the authorities, shaped a negative image of Russia, participated in the creation and dissemination of foreign agents' materials and spoke out against the military operation. He resides abroad.
Kirill Sedov, as the ministry claims, spread inaccurate information about the decisions and policies of the authorities, spoke out against the military operation, shaped a negative image of Russia, actively interacted with foreign agents and is an employee of a project founded by a foreign agent.
Yuri Fyodorov, according to the report, spread inaccurate information about the decisions and policies of the authorities, openly spoke in support of Ukraine, participated in the creation of foreign agents' materials, is a member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, and lives outside Russia.
All the listed grounds are cited with reference to the Justice Ministry; the individuals themselves had not provided comments at the time of publication.
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