Russia

Russia: Ongoing Terrorist Threat

Date: April 4th, 2006 |

The U.S. State Department reissued its public announcement alerting travelers to the ongoing potential for terrorist attacks on civilians in Russia. Such attacks have occurred in recent years in many areas, including hotels, tourist sites, schools, public transportation networks and commercial air flights. There are no current specific threats against Americans, but it is prudent [read more]

Russia: Security Upgrade for Moscow’s Subway

Date: November 21st, 2005 |

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Authorities have strengthened security in Moscow�s subway system with the opening of two police booths, at Pushkinskaya station and Vykhino station. Crimes decreased at Okhotniy Ryad station when a similar post opened there last year. The booths are linked via a communications network with all police posts on the Krasnopresnenskaya subway line. Authorities have vowed [read more]

Russia: Ongoing Terrorist Threat

Date: October 4th, 2005 |

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The U.S. State Department has renewed its announcement citing a heightened potential for terrorist attacks in Russia and notes that this situation �is likely to continue for some time.� There is no specific information that Americans or U.S. institutions are targets, but past attacks have occurred at places where anyone could become a victim, including [read more]

Russia

Date: April 19th, 2005 |

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May 8 marks the 60th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, and to commemorate the event virtually the entire center of Moscow will be closed off for celebrations. Red Square, Nikolskaya Ulitsa, Manezhnaya Ploshchad and several other nearby streets will be closed to cars and pedestrians on May 8 and 9. Authorities will not permit [read more]

Russia

Date: January 11th, 2005 |

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Terrorism fears have prompted police in St. Petersburg to be more vigilant checking foreigners� papers, often with the result of perceived harassment by those being checked. Incidents involving Americans increased five-fold in late December, with two cases of U.S. citizens being detained and having their passports confiscated. The U.S. Consulate encourages Americans to carry their [read more]

Russia: Racist Murders in St. Petersburg

Date: December 27th, 2005 |

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Foreign students in St. Petersburg are increasingly the victims of racist attacks with assaults now occurring at triple the rate of last year. A Cameroonian man was killed and a Kenyan wounded in separate attacks around the same time Dec. 24. The victim was the second African student killed in St. Petersburg in two months. [read more]

Russia: St. Petersburg Tourist Police

Date: October 11th, 2005 |

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In an effort to combat its image as a city with a high tourist crime rate, including thieves posing as police who rob unsuspecting visitors, St. Petersburg authorities recently announced plans to establish a tourist police force. The uniformed officers will begin work next summer and will assist tourists who need information or have become [read more]

Russia

Date: June 21st, 2005 |

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Visitors are still falling for a scam that has been worked on tourists in Moscow for years. A man drops a wallet or roll of cash in front of the tourist and continues on apparently not knowing he has dropped it. Another man picks it up and through gestures suggests that he and the tourist [read more]

Russia

Date: April 5th, 2005 |

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Police in St. Petersburg have been robbing Finnish tourists in a repeat of a problem that flared in 2003, when diplomats from several European countries protested to authorities that police were preying on their citizens. At the time, on-duty police were the culprits and the situation improved after the diplomatic protest, but now the problem [read more]

Russia

Date: December 7th, 2004 |

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Legislators have given preliminary backing to a bill that would add more than 3,000 Interior Ministry workers to security at the country’s 184 airports. Their duties will be to guard airports, accompany suspect flights, withhold luggage and cargo, and demand information and documentation from airlines and airport administration. In other news, an American on his [read more]