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"It has been decided to declare the activities of the Moscow Times, a foreign non-governmental organization, undesirable on the territory of the Russian Federation," the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement.

It said the publication "aims to discredit the decisions taken by the leadership of the Russian Federation both in foreign and domestic policy."

The Moscow Times, which publishes in English and Russian and has been reporting on the country since the early 1990s, moved to Amsterdam in 2022.

The "undesirable" status forces organizations to close in Russia. It also means that Russians who work for, fund, or cooperate with these organizations could face prosecution, including up to five years in prison, for some activities.

In a post on X, Moscow Times founder Derk Sauer said, "We will continue business as usual. Independent journalism is a crime in Putin's Russia."

The online publication, which was previously an English-language newspaper in Moscow, is popular with Russian watchers abroad. It has also been a training ground for several journalists working as high-profile foreign correspondents.