Russia's parliament backed a bill on Tuesday providing for jail terms of up to eight years on those found to cooperate in secret with international organisations, part of a package of new "crimes against state security".
Russia has already branded political opponents of President Vladimir Putin "extremists" and shut them down and jailed their leaders. Many dissidents have fled into exile during the crackdown, which has intensified over the past two years. Russia's most prominent human rights group was shut down this year for failing to properly register as a foreign agent.
