Russia’s Justice Ministry has added the Libertarian Party of Russia to its register of “foreign agents.” The updated list also includes writer Dmitry Petrov, journalist Alexander Polivanov, and the Perm-based media project Fourth Sector.
According to the ministry, all of the newly listed entities and individuals distributed materials produced by other “foreign agents” and, it said, published “false information” about the policies of the Russian authorities. The ministry’s statement also says that all of them except Fourth Sector opposed the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Dmitry Petrov is a Russian and Israeli journalist and writer. His war novella Parent’s Day, published in 2024, was shortlisted for the independent literary prize Dar.
Alexander Polivanov is the director of the human rights media project OVD-Info. He previously worked for Support Service, a media outlet and assistance service for people affected by the Russian-Ukrainian war, and was also a staff member at Meduza.
Fourth Sector is a project launched by Perm journalists in 2017. It had already been designated a “foreign agent” in August 2021, although a month earlier, after an unscheduled inspection by the Justice Ministry, the organization had announced its liquidation. In November 2021, the project was removed from the register.
The project’s website says that after some time, its participants decided to relaunch the initiative.