Vladimir Kara-Murza: Russian opposition leader jailed for 25 years after treason conviction

One of Vladimir Putin’s biggest critics has been jailed in Russia for 25 years after being found guilty of treason.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, 41, a father of three and former journalist who holds Russian and British passports, spent years as a politician opposing the Russian president.

He was accused of treason and of discrediting the military by prosecutors after he criticised the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

However, Mr Kara-Murza, who has stood by his criticism throughout the trial, has criticised his prosecution.

Ukraine war latest – Kremlin critic jailed

The opposition leader, who claims to have twice been poisoned by Russian operatives, has previously compared his trial to one of Josef Stalin’s show trials in the 1930s.

He declined to ask the court to acquit him and said: “Criminals are supposed to repent of what they have done. I,
on the other hand, am in prison for my political views.”

His 25-year sentence, which matches the sentence requested by prosecutors, is the harshest of its kind since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Mr Kara-Murza had used speeches in the United States and across Europe to accuse Moscow of bombing civilian targets in Ukraine – which the Kremlin has denied.

He also claimed Russia was being run by a “regime of murderers” in a CNN interview, broadcast hours before his arrest.

Mr Kara-Murza was an ally of the late Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead near the Kremlin in 2015.