Russia strips citizenship from naturalized political opponents

According to reports, on July 17, Russia passed a law increasing the number of articles in the Criminal Code that allow for the revocation of acquired citizenship from 64 to 81.

The list now includes serious crimes, as well as vague terms such as "crimes motivated by extremism" or "justification of terrorism and sabotage activities."

These formulations leave room for arbitrary interpretation: the same sanctions can be applied both to individuals convicted of violent crimes and to users who post opposition content on social media.

Dozens of cases of citizenship revocation have already been recorded — mostly among those convicted under "terrorism" and "extremism" articles.

It is noted that the loss of citizenship in Russia means the loss of nearly all basic rights. Stateless persons (apatrids) have no access to official employment, public healthcare, education, housing rentals, obtaining a driver's license, or other state services. This effectively makes a person legally "invisible" and pushes them out of the country.

"The Russian authorities claim that the new rules will not apply to residents of temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine who received Russian passports. However, according to the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, the next to be targeted will be residents of the new regions and even those who acquired citizenship by birth," the intelligence service stated.

In 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed revoking acquired citizenship for spreading so-called fakes about the army, discrediting the military, participating in undesirable organizations, or calling for violations of territorial integrity.

In addition, Putin proposed that the Federal Security Service (FSB) be authorized to determine "facts of actions threatening state security, which could lead to the revocation of citizenship."