Russia designates two Chechen opposition bloggers as foreign agents

Russia’s Justice Ministry has added Chechen bloggers Islam Belokiev and Hasan Uzarov (Khalitov) to the foreign agents registry.

Belokiev and Uzarov, both of whom are based abroad, were designated as foreign agents on 20 December.

Belokiev is a Chechen–Ingush blogger who runs his own YouTube channel, Islam’s Thoughts. He covers human rights abuses and reports of kidnappings in Chechnya and has previously served as the spokesperson for the Chechen Sheikh Mansur volunteer battalion fighting against Russia in Ukraine.

He says that he expected to be labelled a foreign agent ‘sooner or later’, and that he believes he was designated as such for engaging in ‘anti-Russian activities’, criticising the government, and opposing its invasion of Ukraine.

‘My first thought was, “I hope the West will finally start paying me now.” Sooner or later, I was bound to be labelled a “foreign agent”, and I’m surprised it didn’t happen earlier’, he told OC Media.

Uzarov is also a blogger and dissident who often criticises the policies of Chechen head Ramzan Kadyrov.

Russia’s foreign agent law designates non-commercial organisations as foreign agents if they receive foreign funding and engage in political activities. It was used to target and cripple civil society and independent media in Russia.

The foreign agent registry in Russia is updated on an almost weekly basis, and includes a number of figures from the North Caucasus, including Ingush Independence Committee member Magomed Torijev, Chechen blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov, and Chechen journalist and historian Mairbek Vachagaev.