British nationals urged to leave Russia

Police detain a demonstrator in St. Petersburg, Russia
AP
Tammy Hughes5 March 2022

British nationals have been urged to leave Russia as fighting intensifies in Ukraine.

The Foreign Office said that any British nationals “whose presence in Russia was not essential” should consider leaving by “remaining commercial routes”.

Issuing new guidance on their website, the Foreign Office warned Britons about a new law introduced in Russia on Friday which imposes “restrictions on the publishing and distribution of information related to the Russian armed forces and any military operations”.

The UK has banned Russian flights from its airspace making travel difficult. The Foreign Office said some flights were available via Turkey and the Middle East.

Previously, the advice had been that those outside Russia should not travel to the country.

The move points towards a deepening of the crisis engulfing Ukraine, with impacts of sanctions felt in Russia.

Thousands of Russians have already fled their homeland amid fears Vladimir Putin could impose martial law and shut the border.

EU officials fear that the Russian President could introduce emergency legislation in a bid to further crack down on protest and dissent.

Under the Russian constitution, martial law can be imposed when the country is under threat of attack. It would give Mr Putin extraordinary powers, including the ability to shut the country’s borders, intern all foreigners and control food supplies.

The Kremlin would also be given the power to further tighten censorship of the media, with military commanders given control of what can and cannot be printed and broadcasted. Authorities could also shut down the internet entirely, as well as all social media apps.

On Friday Russia blocked access to Facebook for its 146 million citizens.

The country’s communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, said the social media platform was blocked on day nine of the war due to “cases of discrimination against Russian media”.

Some 7,000 Russian protesters have already been arrested after demonstrating against the invasion of Ukraine, which has reportedly caused the deaths of more than 2,000 civilians since last Friday.

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