A Russian court has sentenced monday september 5 the former Russian journalist Ivan Safronov, a specialist in military matters, to 22 years in prison for high treason, noted an AFP journalist present at the hearing.
Incarcerated since 2020, Ivan Safronov, 32, will have to serve his sentence in a “penal colony of severe regime”, according to the decision of the Moscow City Court, which intervenes in the midst of the conflict in Ukraine. Recognized expert in defense issues, Ivan Safronov, handcuffed, greeted this verdict with a smile in his glass cage for the defendants, according to the AFP journalist.
His supporters in the courtroom chanted “Vanya [diminutif d’Ivan]we love you”, while other people burst into tears. The lawyers for the ex-journalist immediately announced their intention to appeal against this sentence.
Accused to have transmitted sensitive information
Ivan Safronov is accused of having transmitted to a Russian-German political expert, also detained in Russia for “high treason”, information on Russian military operations in Syria, and to the Czech intelligence services elements on arms deliveries from Moscow to Africa. The former journalist firmly rejects these accusations.
He had previously worked for two Russian national dailies, Vedomosti and Kommersant. Forced to resign from Kommersant in 2019, in May 2020 he became an adviser to the former director of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin. His affair was denounced by his former colleagues as revenge for his articles discussing embarrassing incidents in the Russian military.
