Ivan Zhdanov and Leonid Volkov, two of jailed Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny’s closest associates, have been placed on the country’s list of “extremists and terrorists.”
The Interfax state news agency said that entries for the two appeared in the register of Rosfinmonitoring on January 14.
According to the Russian law, the bank accounts of individuals added to the list must be frozen immediately.
Both Volkov, the former coordinator of the now-defunct network of Navalny’s teams across Russia, and Zhdanov, the ex-chief of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), left the country last year and currently reside abroad.
Russia announced last year that it had placed the two activists on an international wanted list.
The FBK has relentlessly targeted senior government officials over the past decade with widely watched videos detailing corruption allegations that were distributed via the Navalny LIVE channel.
Navalny’s political network has been instrumental in implementing a “smart voting” strategy — a project designed to promote candidates most likely to defeat Kremlin-linked figures.
Last year, the Moscow City Court declared the FBK and other groups related to Navalny as extremist, preventing people associated with Navalny and his network of regional offices across Russia from seeking public office.
The ruling also carries possible lengthy prison terms for activists who have worked with the organizations.
