A court in Moscow has sentenced a French researcher to three years in a penal colony for breaking Russia's controversial law on registering as a "foreign agent", reports the BBC.
Laurent Vinatier, who worked for a Switzerland-based conflict mediation NGO, was arrested in June while gathering what prosecutors say was information on Russia's military.
Speaking in the courtroom in Russian, Vinatier apologised, saying he was unaware he should have registered. The 48-year-old, who had earlier admitted his guilt, recited a verse by Russian poet Alexander Pushkin.
France described the court ruling as "extremely harsh", calling for the researcher's immediate release. Vinatier's defence team said he would appeal.
On Monday, Judge Natalia Cheprasova at Moscow's Zamoskvoretsky district court said: "The court ruled to find Vinatier guilty and sentence him to three years in a general regime penal colony."