Category: news

Lately we have often read in the news about cases in which a UN Committee has demanded that Russian citizens not be extradited to their homeland, because they face torture and ill-treatment there. These include the cases of Yulia Emelyanova and Mansur Movlaev in Kazakhstan, and Mikhail Timofeev in Georgia. An “Aliens” lawyer explained when…

Last week Lithuania’s defence minister Robertas Kaunas authorised the deployment of 100 troops to the border with Russia. One of the reasons given was the risk that Vladimir Putin may announce a second round of mobilisation. “It is plain for everyone to see in the public domain that a mobilisation is being planned in Russia.…

EXILES (“Chuzhie”) is a Russian-speaking community of lawyers defending migrants in Europe. If you need help, write to us here or by email.

Last week Latvia’s foreign minister Baiba Braže announced that the procedure had begun for placing Russian journalist Leonid Ragozin on the list of undesirable individuals, or personae non gratae. Braže had earlier been urged to do so by Latvia’s interior minister Jānis Dombrava. In his view, Ragozin “publicly expresses views sharply at odds with Latvia’s…

EXILES (“Chuzhie”) is a Russian-speaking community of lawyers defending migrants in Europe. If you need help, write to us here or by email

On 17 September 2026, 67-year-old Igor Odintsov swam across the border between Russia (Kaliningrad Region) and Lithuania. He was fleeing criminal proceedings brought against him at home over an anti-war statement (Article 205.2(2) of the Criminal Code — justification of terrorism). After crossing the Neman river and reaching Lithuania, he was detained by officers of…

Chuzhie (“Outsiders”) is a Russian-speaking community of lawyers defending migrants in Europe. If you need help, write to us here or by email.

EXILES’s lawyer Mikhail Benyash has described the typical profile of someone Lithuania declares a national security threat. Judging by the cases our lawyers currently have in hand, this is someone who:– is a citizen of Russia or Belarus;– was not actively involved in opposition activity in their home country;– has a work history at a…

Last week we asked you how often we should publish our roundups of migration news. Opinion was split. We decided the best solution would be a compromise — publishing the roundup twice a week. We will be doing so on Tuesdays and Fridays. Chuzhie (“Outsiders”) is a Russian-speaking community of lawyers defending migrants in Europe.…

In March 2025, Lithuania’s Migration Department declared a 63-year-old Russian man a threat to national security, refused to renew his permanent residence permit and cancelled the one he held at the time. The main reason was the man’s past employment in Russia. Back home he had been a senior operator at a military unit, then…