United States advises Russian citizens to leave immediately.
Due to the conflict in Ukraine, the United States has advised its citizens to flee Russia immediately. There is also the possibility of being arbitrarily arrested or harassed by Russian law enforcement agencies.
The U.S. Embassy in Moscow stated that U.S. citizens who are residing in Russia or traveling there should immediately leave. “Be extra cautious due to the possibility of being wrongly detained.”
It added, “Do not travel in Russia.”
The embassy stated that Russian security services had arrested U.S. citizens for spurious charges. They also singled out U.S. citizens living in Russia for harassment and detention, denied them fair treatment, and convicted them either in secret trials or without providing credible evidence.
Russian authorities arbitrarily enforce U.S. laws against religious workers, and have opened criminal investigations against U.S. citizens involved in religious activity.”
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According to the Kremlin, it wasn’t the first time that U.S. citizens were asked to leave Russia. After President Vladimir Putin’s partial mobilization, the last such warning was issued in September.
The United States has told its citizens to leave Russia immediately due to the war in Ukraine and the risk of arbitrary arrest or harassment by Russian law enforcement agencies https://t.co/hpvDVhYRt0
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 13, 2023
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesperson, said that they (warnings)have been made many times by the State Department in the past period. So this is not a novel thing.”
In January, the Federal Security Service (FSB) stated that prosecutors had opened a criminal investigation against a citizen of the United States on suspicion of espionage.
Brittney Griner, a U.S. basketball player, was released last December in a prisoner exchange. She had been sentenced to nine years imprisonment in a penal colony after being found guilty of possessing vape cartridges that contained cannabis oil. This is prohibited in Russia and Washington labeled the judicial process as a fraud.
Paul Whelan is a former U.S Marine who is currently serving a 16 year sentence in a Russian penal colony. He was convicted of espionage offenses that Washington claims are a sham.
