Russia calls Sakharov Foundation ‘undesirable’

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities pressed ahead with their crackdown on alternative and dissenting voices on Monday by declaring a foundation named for Nobel Peace Prize winner Andrei Sakharov as “undesirable.” The Russian prosecutor-general’s office said on its website that the Andrei Sakharov Foundation’s activities pose a “threat to the basic constitutional structure and security” of the country. It didn’t specify which activities were objectionable. Since Russia launched what its officials call a “special military operation” in Ukraine nearly a year ago, its law enforcement and courts have cracked down on dissent, especially criticism of the Russian military. Russia refers to its activities in the neighboring country by anything other than the officially allowed phrase.