{"id":929,"date":"2025-03-15T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-15T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/?p=929"},"modified":"2025-03-18T23:07:54","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T23:07:54","slug":"russian-anti-war-activists-reveal-what-its-like-being-de-facto-stateless","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/15\/russian-anti-war-activists-reveal-what-its-like-being-de-facto-stateless\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian anti-war activists reveal what it\u2019s like being \u2018de facto stateless\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"\"\t<\/div>
Russians opposing the war in Ukraine have found it difficult to find a home outside of their country amid \u2018sanctions\u2019 on travel (Picture: Rex \/ AFP \/ Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018Home\u2019 has been a far away concept for Aleksei* after he fled Moscow at the start of Russia<\/a>\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The anti-war activist had been living in Georgia for two years<\/a> \u2013 and had planned to make it his permanent residency \u2013 when protests against Georgian\u2019s pro-Kremlin<\/a> government<\/a> engulfed the capital Tbilisi.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He originally fled Russia in 2022<\/a> to avoid conscription. Since then, he is among the hundreds of people who have been arrested in Georgia<\/a> during the ongoing protests, which have been met with unprecedented police brutality.<\/p>\n

But unlike other demonstrators, who, just like Aleksei, have faced beatings and 10 days behind bars, he was faced with the impossible choice of being extradited to Russia or leaving Georgia voluntarily. <\/p>\n

The threat was so severe that in January this year, he bought a one-way ticket to Armenia, leaving his girlfriend and friends behind in Tbilisi.<\/p>\n

This is the third time Aleksei has had to move in the last three years after escaping Russia \u2013 first crossing the border to Kazakhstan, then Georgia and now Armenia.<\/p>\n

Fearing Armenia\u2019s relationship with the Kremlin, he is determined to seek refuge elsewhere. But options for Russians \u2013 even if they oppose the war \u2013 are scarce.<\/p>\n

\u2018I want to move to Europe, but it is hard with my Russian passport,\u2019 he told Metro<\/strong> from his rented room in the Armenian capital Yerevan.<\/p>\n

He added that he has to start from \u2018ground zero\u2019 to rebuild his life.<\/p>\n

\u2018Another option is South East Asia, like Thailand or Vietnam. I would really like to move to Bulgaria, but it is hard, having to obtain a visa.<\/p>\n

\u2018Serbia is easier, but I worry about the government\u2019s ties with the Kremlin \u2013 it is the same like here, in Armenia.\u2019 <\/p>\n

EU members have significantly tightened travel restrictions for Russians after the invasion began in February 2022, while some countries \u2013 Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Poland and the Czech Republic \u2013 have imposed outright bans.<\/p>\n

Citizens need a valid visa\u00a0to enter the Schengen Area, which covers most of the continent, and since the visa facilitation agreement with Russia was fully suspended in September 2022, applications now undergo more extended scrutiny.<\/p>\n

Aleksei said: \u2018After everything I experienced in Georgia, I feel like there is no place for me. I am not sure how to deal with it. I never legalised my status in Georgia, I tried many times but it was not possible. <\/p>\n

\u2018The Georgian police used this against me. It has become clear to me that I have less and less options and I will have to embrace a nomadic life. Now that I can work remotely, it makes sense.<\/p>\n

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Russia\u2019s Foreign Ministry is seen behind a social advertisement billboard showing Z letters \u2013 a tactical insignia of Russian troops in Ukraine (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018But the feeling that you have less and less \u201cspace\u201d in the world, makes me feel stateless. It is hard to deal with it.\u2019<\/p>\n

Ivan*, Aleksei\u2019s cellmate in the Georgian prison, had a similar fate. Both fled Russia within a few months of the start of the war, so they formed a bond.<\/p>\n

After their convictions, the pair were told they had to leave Georgia or face being deported back to Russia. Neither of them wanted to be deported, so they moved to Yerevan instead.<\/p>\n

\u2018I am not a terrorist. I work, I pay taxes in Georgia, I am useful to society. Me being in Georgia was a good thing for the country,\u2019 Ivan told Metro<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u2018I know nothing about Armenia \u2013 culture, language \u2013 nothing. I was prepared to settle in Georgia.\u2019<\/p>\n

Few options remain for Russians seeking to escape the Kremlin\u2019s regime as Europe is continuing to tighten its borders.<\/p>\n

Governments are apprehensive about security threats amid the mounting cases of sabotage and espionage, including\u00a0arson attacks, bombings, and even assassination plots.<\/p>\n

Olga Abramenko, of the\u00a0Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial (ADC), sees a a lot of issues related to the human rights of Russian activists and anti-war protestors in both non-visa countries \u2013 where they can enter without a visa \u2013 and other states.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"METRO\t<\/div>
By early 2024, the peak number of Russians who had moved to Georgia since the beginning of the war had declined by approximately one-third, from a peak of 110,000 at the end of 2022 (Picture: Metro)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

She told Metro<\/strong> said it is \u2018not easy\u2019 to be a Russian immigrant, even in non-visa conditions, in nations formerly part of the Soviet Union, like Georgia, Armenia and Kazakhstan.<\/p>\n

Olga said: \u2018Armenia, for example, was friendly to Russians thinking that it will help their economy. The political context has changed since the start of the war and now Armenia is leaning towards European integration and they want to have closer ties with the US rather than Russia.<\/p>\n

\u2018Of course, this has a major influence on Russian immigrants. In Georgia,\u00a0 there were many cases when anti-war activists were not allowed to enter the country as the ruling party is pro-Russian. So, people have had to find other routes.<\/p>\n

\u2018In Kazakhstan, Russians are facing a different challenge. Authorities are refusing to renew their Russian bank cards, so people are forced to leave the country. So, even immigrating to former Soviet states is uncertain.\u2019<\/p>\n

Olga also said Russian authorities pressure former Soviet states to restrict the movements of Russian immigrants.<\/p>\n

This influence is particularly sensitive for Central Asian countries, which are very much involved in labor migration to Russia.<\/p>\n

\u2018That is why the government, for example, of Kyrgyzstan has to be, let\u2019s say, loyal to Russia,\u2019 she added.<\/p>\n

\u2018There is also a big risk of extradition by request of Russia of activists who immigrate for instance to Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan. There have been such cases.\u2019<\/p>\n

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A demonstrator with a Georgian national flag stands under running water from a cannon rallying outside the parliament\u2019s building in Tbilisi (Picture: AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan an Armenia are also \u2018not safe\u2019 for dissidents due to extradition threats. <\/p>\n

Olga described the political situation as \u2018quite unpredictable\u2019. Another step the Kremlin takes to curb the rights of Russian activists who flee abroad is stripping them of their citizenship.<\/p>\n

ADC Memorial has observed some cases in which dissidents are \u2018punished by the regime\u2019 by having their internal ID, used to travel within Russia, and international passport cancelled, leaving them de facto stateless.<\/p>\n

This means they cannot travel and seek help from a consulate anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n

Olga estimated this has happened to at least \u2018dozens\u2019 of immigrants since 2022.<\/p>\n

She said: \u2018I don\u2019t even know how to define this legally and whether it makes people stateless. All I can say is that they cannot exercise their right to free movement.\u2019<\/p>\n

Similar to Russia, its biggest ally \u2013 and neighbour \u2013 Belarus is also making an example of some activists abroad by cancelling their documents.<\/p>\n

Olga said that some nations like Lithuania and Poland welcome Belarusian immigrants if their documents are no longer valid.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\t\t\"(FILES)\t<\/div>
Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza defended anti-war Russians in an interview with Metro (Picture: AFP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018We would like to see such measures for Russians as well, but it is difficult because of the war.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

Vladimir Kara-Murza, one of the last surviving prominent opposition figures in Russia,<\/a> said such \u2018blanket bans\u2019 imposed by the EU on his fellow citizens \u2018make the Kremlin happy\u2019.<\/p>\n

Propagandists blasted on Russian radio \u2018would have a field day\u2019 every time new sanctions are announced, he said, recalling his days in a Siberian gulag when the only \u2018entertainment\u2019 prisoners were allowed was to listen to radio stations.<\/p>\n

He said: \u2018They would say, \u201cWe have been telling you, these Westerners are Russophobes, they do not hate Vladimir Putin, they hate all Russians\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u2018Such sanctions align with this message.\u2019<\/p>\n

Vladimir stressed that \u2018nothing could be more counter-productive\u2019 as such sanctions on travel do not affect the Russian president or his allies in the Kremlin.<\/p>\n

Instead, it is independent journalists, human and civil rights activists, and in general, Russians who have condemned the war that are affected by the sanctions the most.<\/p>\n

*In the interest of their safety, the names Aleksei and Ivan have been changed to protect their true identities.<\/em><\/p>\n

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

For more stories like this, <\/strong>check our news page<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Russians opposing the war in Ukraine have found it difficult to find a home outside of their country amid \u2018sanctions\u2019 on travel (Picture: Rex \/ AFP \/ Getty) \u2018Home\u2019 has been a far away concept for Aleksei* after he fled Moscow at the start of Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The anti-war activist had been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russia-ukraine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=929"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":936,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929\/revisions\/936"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}