The United Kingdom on Friday announced sanctions against five Russians accused of involvement in the poisoning and arrest of opponent Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Monday.
The sanctions target two Russian investigators and a judge “involved in the arrest of Vladimir Kara-Murza”, according to a statement from the British Foreign Office.
In addition to Denis Kolesnikov, Andrei Zadatchine and Elena Lenskaia, two agents of the Russian security services, Alexandre Samofal and Konstantin Koudriavtsev, “linked to the 2015 and 2017 poisonings” were also charged, the document added.
The five were banned from travel and their assets were frozen.
‘The UK will continue to support Kara-Murza and his family’assured British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, asking Russia to release him “immediately and unconditionally”.
“The treatment and sentencing of Vladimir Kara-Murza by Russia shows once again that Russia does not respect fundamental human rights.”condemned the minister.
The UK had already sanctioned the judge presiding over the trial, Sergei Podoprigorov, and the head of the detention center where Kara-Murza is being held, Dmitri Komnov.
On Monday, the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, denounced the “outrageously harsh decision of the judiciary” applied to Kara-Murza, denouncing a “political process”.
After a closed-door trial, a Moscow court has found Kara-Murza guilty of “high treason”, spreading “false information” about the Russian army and working illegally for an “undesirable organization”.
The opponent has been sentenced to a cumulative sentence of 25 years in a penal colony, which entails stricter prison conditions.
Source: DN
