PARIS, France - France on Wednesday condemned the eight-year jail term handed down to exiled journalist Marina Ovsiannikova, who became famous for criticising Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
"Russian propaganda is a weapon in its own right in Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine," Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said in a statement.
She also condemned "repression carried out by the Russian authorities against voices critical of power".
Ovsiannikova, 45, held up a protest placard during an evening news programme in March 2022.
But she was sentenced for a separate protest she made outside the Kremlin four months later.
Having fled the country last year after escaping house arrest with her then 11-year-old daughter, she was not present for Wednesday's sentencing.
Since Russia launched full-scale hostilities against Ukraine last year, the authorities have launched an unprecedented crackdown on dissent. They have detained, jailed or fined thousands who opposed the conflict.