Russian opposition politician Maxim Kruglov has been sentenced to seven years in a penal colony on charges of spreading false information about the military, Russian media reported on Wednesday, less than three months before parliamentary elections.
Kruglov, deputy chairman of the liberal opposition party Yabloko, was convicted over two social media posts published in 2022.
In one post, he cited United Nations figures on civilian casualties in Ukraine. The other concerned the town of Bucha, which became a symbol of alleged Russian war crimes after Russian troops withdrew from the area in 2022.
Kruglov served in the Moscow City Duma from 2019 to 2024 and has been a co-chair of Yabloko since late 2023. He was detained in October 2025, according to Russian media.
Russian judicial authorities have also already taken action against other politicians in the party, such as the well-known deputy leader Lev Shlosberg.
The Kremlin has largely silenced critical media and the opposition. Many opponents of the war and critics of the Kremlin are in exile.
Elections to the State Duma - the parliament - are scheduled to take place in Russia from September 18 to 20.
