Russia May Exclude Yabloko Party from Elections

On Monday, Russia's Supreme Court will rule on a lawsuit that could bar the Yabloko party from the September parliamentary elections. According to the TASS news agency, Yabloko is the only party running in the elections that opposes Russia's war in Ukraine.

The lawsuit was filed by Rodina, a small pro-Kremlin nationalist party. Its leader, Alexei Zhuravlev, claims that Yabloko is a Western-backed movement whose goal is to discredit Russia and the elections.

Yabloko rejects these claims and is preparing its own lawsuit. Party Chairman Nikolai Rybakov claims the party is being targeted for removal from the election precisely because of its pro-peace stance.

United Russia, which supports President Vladimir Putin, remains the favorite in the September election. At the same time, Russian authorities have recently been cracking down on anti-war voices.

Last month, Boris Nadezhdin was designated a "foreign agent" and left Russia soon after.

(Reuters, mja)