Authorities in Ukraine say they have detained a journalist accused of undermining the country’s territorial integrity.
The Security Service (SBU) said on January 17 that Ukrainian journalist Olena Boyko (aka Olena Vishchur), who was deported from Russia earlier this month, has distributed “anti-Ukrainian material” on the Internet since 2014, when Moscow illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimea region.
Russia is also backing separatists in Ukraine's eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in a conflict that has killed more than 10,300 people since April 2014.
In its statement, the SBU said Boyko moved to territory held by the separatists in August before heading to Russia, where it said she publicly called for a change of “Ukraine's borders or its state structure."
In December, Boyko was fined by a court in Moscow on charges of violating Russia’s migration regulations and ordered deported.
Before the ruling, Boyko took part in televised talk shows in which she harshly criticized Ukrainian authorities and expressed support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Her lawyer in Russia, Galina Perfilyeva, has said her client was sent back to Ukraine on January 16.
She said Boyko had asked for political asylum in Russia several times but her requests were all rejected.
Editors' Picks
Top Trending
1
U.S., Canadian Warplanes Intercept Russian, Chinese Military Aircraft Near Alaska
2Crowdsourcing Russia's Future: Poll Of Experts Considers What Comes After Putin
3Russia Attacks Ukrainian Danube Port For Second Day As NATO Scrambles Warplanes Over Romania
4Turkey Detains Russian Man Suspected Of Car Bombing In Moscow
5Ukrainian Forces Fight Intense Battles In Donetsk Region, Zelenskiy Says
6Live Briefing: Russia Invades Ukraine
7Pentagon Finds Another $2 Billion Of Accounting Errors For Ukraine Aid
8'Don't Even Whisper In Your Language': Russian Course For Central Asians Lays Down Strict Rules
9Under Relentless Russian Attacks, Ukrainian Power Plant Workers Race To Get The Lights Back On
10Bulgarian President Admits Blocking Pro-Western Envoy To Kyiv
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.