Kremlin ups pressure on Navalny, says opposition group 'foreign agent'

Russia on Wednesday upped the pressure on opposition leader Alexei Navalny, declaring his organisation a "foreign agent" that will be subject to increased state monitoring.

Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which often publishes investigations into state officials, will now have to present itself as a "foreign agent" on official documents.

Russia started a controversial list of foreign agent organisations, which in Russian implies spying for a foreign government, in 2012. This has led to many of the groups closing down.

Navalny called the move "absolutely illegal" and said it was "obviously a direct order from (President Vladimir) Putin." "FBK never received a single kopeck of foreign money," he wrote on Twitter.

He demanded that the justice ministry publicly prove that the foundation received funds from outside Russia.

FBK, which has often been raided by authorities, said the move was an attempt to curb its activity.

Its director Ivan Zhdanov said it was "another attempt to suffocate" the foundation. He said the group, which seeks donations from the public, is funded "exclusively by Russian citizens."