Lviv-born pediatrician living in Russia may face 6-year prison sentence after criticizing war

Russian authorities are seeking a six-year prison sentence for Dr. Nadezhda Buyanova, a pediatrician originally from Lviv, Ukraine, accused of criticizing Russia’s actions in Ukraine during a private appointment.

The case began when Anastasia Akinshina, the ex-wife of a soldier missing in Ukraine, alleged that Buyanova called Russia an aggressor and labeled her ex-husband a legitimate target.

Buyanova, who denied these accusations, was initially released with restrictions but later placed in pre-trial detention for alleged non-compliance.

She is being charged with spreading “fake information” about the Russian military.

“I am not a politician…I am just a doctor,” Buyanova said in court, insisting she is innocent.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's crackdown on dissent since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine has seen thousands of his citizens arrested and many jailed.

In 2023, at least 21,000 people were targeted by Russia's repressive laws against anti-war activists, according to Amnesty International.

Russia imprisons former US consulate employee for ‘secret collaboration with foreign state’

Robert Shonov, a former employee of the U.S. consulate in Vladivostok, was detained in 2023 and accused of passing information on Russia’s war in Ukraine to the U.S. He was sentenced to four years and 10 months in prison on Nov. 1.

The Kyiv IndependentOlena Goncharova