Russia restricts foreign trips to officials – British intelligence

12:03, 15.03.2023 1 min read

Russian public officials and workers have been subject to increasingly severe foreign travel restrictions since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and these restrictions could be tightened even further, according to a defense intelligence statement by the UK Department of Defense and Northern Ireland on Twitter on Wednesday.

"Some officials have likely had to fortreit their passports to the Federal Security Service. Employees closer to the centre of power face more severe restrictions; Kremlin officials are barred from all international leisure travel," the intelligence said.

Intelligence said travel restrictions were tightened after the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014 and are a continuation of measures which date from the Soviet era. The measures are likely designed to prevent the flight or defection of increasingly disaffected officials, according to the statement.

"There is a realistic possibility that as the securitisation of the Russian state continues, travel restrictions will be tightened for an increasing number of public sector employees," the intelligence said.