Press Release, 30.01.2026

Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

On 29 January, an action of writing letters to political prisoners was held at Yabloko’s Moscow office – it was timed to coincide with Russian Science Day and was dedicated to scientists deprived of their freedom for political reasons. As a rule, Russian Science Day is a celebration for academicians, scientists, professors and students who have devoted themselves to research activities. At the same time, in Russia, around 10% of all political prisoners are now scientists and teachers, the organisers of the action emphasised on 29 January.

Sergei Popov, astrophysicist and professor of the Russian Academy of Science, encouraged this first action of writing letters to political prisoners in 2026. Opening the action, he emphasised that today Russian science was losing contact with the outside world, and scientists were increasingly becoming subjects of criminal cases. He recalled that Russian Science Day is celebrated on 8 February, but today this holiday is associated with thoughts about scientists, teachers, students and postgraduate students who have found themselves under persecution for expressing their political views. According to the organisers of the action of writing letters, there are at least 125 such political prisoners in Russia.

“You can support them by participating in actions of writing letters,” Sergei Popov said. “Of course, we all hope that someday a time will come when science will be able to develop more freely. But now two things have happened in science simultaneously. On the one hand, there has been a loss of external reputation; on the other, a loss of internal reputation. Thus, colleagues around the world will now think ten times before getting involved in some 20-year joint project with Russian scientists, since an enormous number of joint projects have been cut in recent years. As for internal reputation, even 15 years ago Russia seemed like a good place to build a scientific career. Now, I think, the current and next generations of young people will consider that this is a place associated with great risk for a scientific career.”

Photo: Sergei Popov / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The action this time differed not only in theme but also in an essential attribute – postcards. Participants in the action of writing letters – this time more than a hundred people came to the action – were able to send scientists – political prisoners unique postcards featuring images of space, printed specially for Russian Science Day.

Photo: Special postcards issued for Russian Science Day / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

And there were traditionally handmade postcards.

Photo: Postcards made by participants of the action of writing letters to political prisoners in Moscow / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The writer Maria Voloshchuk spoke at the action of writing letters, as did the physicist, human rights defender, candidate of physical and mathematical sciences, and scientist known since Soviet times Boris Altshuler – he spoke about the efforts of international organisations in assisting persecuted scientists.

Photo: Boris Altshuler speaking / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

Yabloko supporter Yekaterina Sedova spoke about the case of the political prisoner scientist Alexey Vorobyov, a former associate professor at Moscow Aviation University, and read an extract from his letter. It should be recalled that Vorobyov was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment under several “serious” Criminal Code articles – including “high treason”. He has been deprived of his freedom since February 2019.

This is not the only scientist whose name was mentioned at the action of writing letters. Many recalled scientists who today are either arrested, or convicted, or declared “foreign agents” or have left the country.

For example, Dmitry Bogmut – a technician at the Laboratory of Neutron Physical-Chemical Research at the St Petersburg Institute of Nuclear Physics has been deprived of his freedom since April 2024 and is accused of spreading “fakes” (Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code). The Deputy Chair of Yabloko, Maxim Kruglov, a candidate of political sciences and teacher of political science, is being persecuted under a similar article; he has been deprived of his freedom since October 2024. Another scientist – the sociologist Boris Kagarlitsky – was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for “justifying terrorism” (Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The Russian physicist and specialist in the field of aerogasdynamics Anatoly Maslov was convicted of “high treason” (Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and sentenced to 14 years in a penal colony; he has been in custody since May 2022. One of the youngest scientists among today’s political prisoners is the mathematician Azat Miftakhov, who has been deprived of his freedom since February 2019; in January 2021 he was sentenced to six years in a penal colony for “hooliganism by prior conspiracy” (Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), and in 2023 to four more years in a penal colony for “justifying terrorism” for conversations with his cellmates (Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

All of them and many other political prisoner scientists were entered into Rosfinmonitoring’s Register of Extremists and Terrorists because of the “severity” and specifics of the criminal articles.

The organiser of the action, Anna Shatunovskaya-Byurno, also reminded participants about Yabloko party members deprived of their freedom for their convictions and about those Russian citizens who had joined the list of political prisoners over the past month.

Federal Bureau member Andrey Morev read out letters from Yabloko Deputy Chairs Lev Shlosberg and Maxim Kruglov with words of gratitude to all party members and supporters for their help to political prisoners, for their principled defence of the position of peace and freedom.

Photo: Andrei Morev speaking and participants signing postcards / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

Yabloko strives to do everything possible so that political prisoners, including scientists, are released as soon as possible, Yabloko Chair Nikolai Rybakov emphasised in his speech at the action of writing letters. But there is a very important component that will help them wait for this moment – support. It is necessary for overcoming psychological and physical ordeals.

“You are making an enormous contribution to giving people faith and understanding – they are not alone, they are not forgotten,” Nikolai Rybakov said. “The more such letters with words of support reach people in detention, the more their safety will be ensured. Because such is the system of Russian places of detention: if the head of the institution knows that a particular person is under public attention and scrutiny, a different attitude towards them will develop. I corresponded and later spoke with people who were released from detention – they speak precisely about this: when letters arrive, and if there are many of these letters, the attitude towards the person changes, respect appears… Such is the system. And I thank everyone who writes to political prisoners, who participates in Yabloko’s actions of writing letters, for this invaluable support.”

Today there are at least 1,270 political prisoners in Russia; many of them either come from St. Petersburg or lived there and were arrested and subsequently convicted there. The action of writing letters to political prisoners is just as large-scale and regular as in Moscow. The first action of writing letters in 2026 was held there on 28 January, Alexander Shishlov, Coordinator of the party’s Federal Political Committee, leader of the Yabloko faction in the St Petersburg Legislative Assembly, and candidate of physical and mathematical sciences, said at the Moscow action.

“Another action of writing letters was held on 28 January; we wrote and have already sent more than 200 letters, and this really is such undemanding work for us – to write letters,” said Alexander Shishlov, speaking in Moscow. “And for those who are now deprived of their freedom, this is very important, because it helps them understand that we remember them, that people at liberty know and see the injustice that is happening around them. It is very important simply to share warmth. Let us do just that. Any of us could end up there. These are such times that this must be understood, and every word, every letter, every postcard that goes to those who are now deprived of their freedom is very important, and this is our common contribution to our future. Thank you all for what you do.”

Alexei Sakharov performed the musical programme at the action of writing letters on 29 January, performing songs by A. Galich, A. Gorodnitsky and M. Ancharov – the eternally relevant words of Soviet bards resonated well with the action’s theme.

Photo: Alexei Sakharov performing / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

In total, 337 letters addressed to 77 political prisoners were written during the action.

The next action of writing letters at Moscow Yabloko will take place at the end of February.

It should be noted that Yabloko regularly publishes the schedule of actions of writing letters in Moscow, St Petersburg and many other regions of Russia on its website and on the party’s social media.