Americans in Russia should leave “immediately” amid the threat posed to them by local authorities, the U.S. embassy in Moscow said in an alert issued Sunday. In the message, the embassy cited “the potential for harassment and the singling out of U.S. citizens for detention by Russian government security officials” and “the arbitrary enforcement of local law” as reasons for Americans to leave the country or avoid traveling there altogether.

“U.S. citizens residing or traveling in Russia should depart immediately,” the alert read. “Exercise increased caution due to the risk of wrongful detentions.” The new message follows a similar warning issued in September when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a mass mobilization to bolster his invasion of Ukraine. The Biden administration was forced last year to release the convicted Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout in a prisoner swap for the American basketball star Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia last February and sentenced to nine years in jail for the possession of a gram of hash oil. Read more.

Source: Matzav/Reuters