Russia Supreme Court bars anti-war Yabloko Party from Duma race
Russia's Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by the opposition party Yabloko, officially barring the country's main anti-war political group from participating in September's State Duma elections.
Police officers detained at least 85 people outside the courthouse during the proceedings. Despite the ruling, party leader Nikolai Rybakov announced plans to challenge the decision before the Presidium of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court.
Widespread crackdowns and court arrests
Yabloko's leadership strongly condemned the police crackdown, demanding the immediate release of all detained supporters and an end to systemic political intimidation.
Rybakov stated that at least 35 people were arrested directly from inside the public hearing room, despite available seating and no law violations committed. He emphasized that law-enforcement officers had also raided the homes of journalists and election candidates who attended the court's initial hearing on August 10.
Among those taken into custody was Viktor Balabanov, a Yabloko parliamentary candidate who had been formally summoned to testify in court.
Allegations of foreign funding
Russian authorities justified the electoral ban by accusing Yabloko of receiving foreign funding and committing copyright violations. Party leaders dismissed both allegations as politically motivated fabrications.
In response, Yabloko published a report revealing that the ruling United Russia party and other pro-Kremlin factions received foreign contributions totaling over €9.2 million from donors across 22 countries, including the United States, France, Britain, and Germany.
Yabloko demanded that the judiciary either overturn its exclusion or apply the same legal standards to all political parties.
Opposition unity behind Yabloko
The decision to disqualify the party follows explicit endorsements from exiled opposition leader Yulia Navalnaya and other prominent dissidents.
Navalnaya had urged voters to back Yabloko as the last remaining legally registered party in Russia openly opposing the war in Ukraine.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
