Pussy Riot Added to Russia’s List of ‘Terrorists and Extremists’

The Russian feminist punk group Pussy Riot has been officially added to the list of "terrorists and extremists" maintained by Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring). This administrative update follows a Moscow court decision in December 2025, which declared the group an "extremist organization" at the request of the Prosecutor General’s Office. The initial lawsuit was heard behind closed doors, with prosecutors arguing that the group's activities posed a significant threat to state security. Pussy Riot is widely recognized for its political activism against the Russian government and its opposition to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The designation significantly restricts the group's financial operations and legal standing within Russia. Recent activities by the group include a joint protest with the Ukrainian collective Femen in early May, timed to coincide with the opening of the Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale. This latest listing further intensifies the crackdown on dissenting voices and artistic expression in Russia, marking a severe escalation in the state's legal pressure on the activist collective.