Monitoring Desk
MOSCOW: Russia’s Justice Ministry added Zemfira, one of post-Soviet Russia’s most popular singers on Friday, to a list of foreign agents, citing her support for Ukraine and criticism of Russia’s “special military operation” in that country.
Russian government
As per a ministry statement, Zemfira, full name Zemfira Ramazanova, “held concerts in hostile countries while speaking out against the special military operation, openly supported Ukraine and received support from foreign sources.”
Zemfira, who is of Volga Tatar origin and was born in the region of central Russia of Bashkortostan, began performing in 1998 and became popular in Russia and other ex-Soviet countries. She was well-known for her opposition to the conflict with Ukraine, and her website featured the slogan “No to war” for a time.
Several websites claim she left Russia to reside in France after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Russians accused of being foreign agents are frequently subjected to police searches and other punitive measures. Many people have fled the country in the last year.
According to the ministry, other Russian nationals, including opposition politician Dmitry Gudkov, were labelled a foreign agents on Friday.
