(MENAFN) Russia's financial monitoring agency Rosfinmonitoring has designated former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov and prominent economist Sergey Guriev as "terrorists and extremists," according to an official registry update posted Monday.

The two high-profile Kremlin critics, both living in exile for years, now face asset freezes and severe banking restrictions inside Russia. The Monday announcement provided no rationale behind the terror classification.

Moscow had previously labeled Kasyanov a "foreign agent" in 2023, accusing him of "actively taking part in the creation and distribution" of foreign agent materials and disseminating "false information aimed at tarnishing Russian authorities."

Authorities also cited Kasyanov's opposition to Moscow's military operation in Ukraine and his involvement with the 'Anti-War Committee of Russia', an expatriate group established in early 2022 following the eruption of large-scale fighting between Russia and Ukraine.

From 2000 to 2004, Kasyanov served as the nation's prime minister. Following his departure from government, he shifted to opposition politics and eventually headed the liberal-democratic Party of People's Freedom (PARNAS), which Russia's Supreme Court dissolved in 2023.

Domestic critics have nicknamed him 'Misha two percent', referencing persistent graft accusations he has consistently rejected.

Guriev, who directed the New Economic School between 2004 and 2013 and currently lives overseas, previously faced Moscow's accusations of producing and circulating foreign agent content while publicly opposing Russia's military operation in Ukraine.

Inclusion on the 'terrorists and extremists' list triggers instant domestic asset confiscation and stringent financial transaction barriers within Russia.

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