Russian officials restricted from travelling abroad

The Federation Council of Russia (the so-called Senate) has approved amendments to the law “About the status of a senator of the Russian Federation and the status of a deputy of the State Duma (Parliament) …”, state controlled information agency TASS reports. 

The amendment states that officials are “obliged to obtain permission to travel outside the Russian Federation, except for official business trips”.

If an official does not comply with the rule, he or she could lose their job.

TASS quotes the accompanying materials to the law, which state that

“the need for amendments is due to the new threats to the security of the Russian Federation in the context of the special military operation on the territory of Ukraine, the pressure of sanction from Western countries, and significant activation of the destructive activity of foreign special forces of unfriendly states…. Thus it enables the possibility to prevent a deputy or a senator from visiting the country where there is a danger of an arrest …”

Despite anti-Western propaganda in Russia, local officials, and their families have always been keen to holiday and buy property in various Western countries. Since the Russian state considers the countries of the European Union to be ‘unfriendly’, it’s highly unlikely that any of the senators or deputies will be allowed to visit their Spanish or French estates any time soon.

By adopting the law to restrict the travel freedom of its citizens, the Russian Federation is gradually reverting to the USSR practices, where borders were closed and everyone had to get permission to travel abroad.