MOSCOW, June 24 - A court in Moscow on Wednesday convicted Maxim Kruglov, the deputy leader of the liberal Yabloko party, of disseminating false information about the Russian military and sentenced him to seven years in prison. The conviction stems from two posts Kruglov published on the Telegram social network in 2022, the year Russia deployed large numbers of troops to Ukraine.
Kruglov, a former member of Moscow's city legislature, was detained in October of last year and charged over the content of the two messages. At his trial he denied the charges and told the court that he regarded the war in Ukraine as a tragedy that must be brought to an end as soon as possible.
Prosecutors focused on two specific posts. One referenced United Nations data on the number of people killed in the conflict, while the other discussed events that took place in Bucha in March 2022. Ukraine and its Western allies have accused Russian forces of killing civilians in Bucha; Russian authorities have maintained that the killings were staged to discredit Russia's military.
Context within Russia's political landscape
Yabloko, which was among Russia's principal liberal parties in the immediate post-Soviet period, now holds only a handful of seats in regional parliaments and none in the national legislature. Despite a much reduced parliamentary presence, the party continues to participate in elections, preserving a public forum in which it can voice opposition to the war.
The sentencing of Kruglov comes slightly more than two months before nationwide voting for the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, scheduled for September. The timing highlights the continued legal risks faced by prominent critics of government policy in the run-up to a major electoral event.
What was charged
- Kruglov was accused of spreading false information about the Russian armed forces based on two Telegram posts made in 2022.
- He was arrested in October of the previous year and maintained his innocence at trial.
- One post cited U.N. casualty figures; the other referred to the March 2022 incidents in Bucha.
Limits of public record - Public reports record Kruglov's conviction, the content of the two posts under scrutiny, and his courtroom statements. Beyond those items the public record in this report does not provide further details on sentencing proceedings, appeals, or additional legal actions.