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The scale of the "unprecedented pressure campaign" of the American special services against Russians living in the United States has become massive recently, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Russians in the US are summoned for interrogation by the FBI, they are threatened with criminal prosecution, they are suspected of being Russian spies, the Foreign Ministry notes. Zakharova called this attitude discrimination, which resembles outright Russophobia. This kind of behaviour contradicts the American laws, which explicitly prohibit hostility on a national basis.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has appealed to the White House to stop the persecution of Russians abroad. The Foreign Ministry notes that many Russian immigrants are US citizens, who simply do not want to lose contact with their homeland. They refuse to follow the propaganda that dominates the United States.
The Russian Foreign Ministry will continue to defend the rights and interests of Russians in the States, Maria Zakharova stressed. The department uses international legal and bilateral agreements to end the persecution of Russians, who participate in compatriot organizatios, the Foreign Ministry said.
During 2022, at least 300 Russian immigrants, including students and retired persons, "were subjected to investigative measures by the FBI." Members of the Russian diaspora were threatened with criminal prosecution, accused of not complying with the foreign agents law.
As a result, the Coordinating Council of Organizations of Russian Compatriots in the United States was forced to suspend its activities. In a statement published on the organization's website, it is said that the reason was an ongoing investigation by American intelligence services.
Russkiy Mir
