A court in Crimea set up by Russian-imposed authorities says it has launched a probe into RFE/RL journalist Olena Yurchenko for "activities discrediting Russia's armed forces."
The court in the Russian-controlled Crimean city of Kerch said it had registered an administrative case against Yurchenko, who has been working as an editor at RFE/RL's Crimea.Realities project after she fled Crimea in 2014 following the Ukrainian peninsula's illegal annexation by Russia.
The case does not specify what Yurchenko did to warrant the charges.
The administrative punishment for "publicly discrediting the Russian Army's activities" is a fine of up to 50,000 rubles ($820). According to Russian law, further similar infractions committed within a year may lead to criminal charges that are punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
RFE/RL President Jamie Fly condemned the move, calling the charges "ridiculous."
“We stand by Olena Yurchenko as she faces yet another attempt by the Kremlin to silence and intimidate those who speak truth to power,” Fly said in a statement on August 4.
“These ridiculous charges will not stop journalists like Olena from reporting on the horror [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has unleashed upon the people of Ukraine," he added.
After Moscow launched its ongoing invasion of Ukraine in late February, Russia's Roskomnadzor media regulator blocked Crimea.Realities and RFE/RL's several other websites in Russian.
Russia took control of Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014 after sending in troops, seizing key facilities, and staging a referendum dismissed as illegal by at least 100 countries, including the United States and most European nations.