Russia Cancels Citizenship of Eight People Originally From Central Asia

Russia’s Federal Security Service and Ministry of Internal Affairs have revoked the citizenship of eight naturalized people originally from Central Asia, citing alleged threats to national security, Interfax reported. The Federal Security Service (FSB) said the citizenship cancellations were carried out under Russia’s 2023 citizenship law, which allows authorities to strip naturalized citizens of Russian nationality in certain cases related to national security and public safety. Among those affected is a resident of Russia’s Tver region who had previously been convicted several times of arranging fictitious registrations and residency permits for foreign nationals and Russian citizens. According to the FSB, one of the people whose status he helped legalize in Russia is suspected of assisting the perpetrators of the March 2024 terrorist attack at Moscow’s Crocus City Hall concert venue, which killed more than 140 people and became one of the deadliest attacks in modern Russian history. Authorities also revoked the citizenship of a resident of the Tula region who, according to the FSB, presented himself as a figure in the local criminal underworld. He had been convicted of illegal weapons possession and sentenced to one year and six months in a penal settlement. The remaining cases involved people living in several Russian regions. The FSB said a resident of Buryatia promoted nationalist views directed against Russia’s indigenous population, while a resident of the Altai region had repeatedly faced criminal charges for assault-related offenses. Three residents of the Tyumen region were stripped of citizenship for allegedly spreading what authorities described as anti-Russian sentiments and encouraging people to organize along ethnic lines to participate in interethnic conflicts. Another resident of the Arkhangelsk region was accused of contributing to tensions in interethnic and interfaith relations. The FSB did not disclose the countries of origin of the eight people, describing them only as natives of Central Asia. The move comes amid increased scrutiny of migration and naturalization policies in Russia following the Crocus City Hall attack. Russian authorities have tightened migration controls and expanded security checks involving foreign nationals and naturalized citizens from Central Asia, a region that remains a major source of labor migration to Russia. Under the citizenship law adopted in 2023, Russian citizenship obtained through naturalization can be revoked for a range of offenses that authorities classify as threats to national security.