Russian Court upholds ex-reporter's 22-year treason sentence

Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation, center, stands in a court room during a court session in Moscow, Russia, Sept. 5, 2022. [AP Photo]

A court in the Russian capital on Wednesday rejected an appeal from a former journalist who was convicted of treason and given a 22-year prison sentence following what was widely seen as a politically motivated trial.

The appeals court upheld the September sentence handed to Ivan Safronov, who worked as a military affairs reporter for leading business newspaper Kommersant before becoming an adviser to the head of Russian space corporation Roscosmos.