November 19, 2023

Do Not Talk to Foreigners


Do Not Talk to Foreigners
Aerial view of the Moscow State University campus. I.s.kopytov, Wikimedia Commons

The Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education has initiated the collection of personal data from students and teachers who participated in international scientific events in Russia and abroad in 2023.

These requirements were outlined in a communication distributed to Russian universities. Employees of institutes and universities are instructed to complete and submit multiple forms with this information by December 22, 2023. The forms should include the names and patronymics of all participants, their respective statuses, and the countries of origin of their foreign contacts.

An employee from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education confirmed the authenticity of the document to journalists. They noted that while records of international events were maintained previously, the scrutiny was not as meticulous. "I’ve dealt with a similar problem in the past, but this is the first time I’ve encountered lists on such a large scale," the employee stated.

The employee believes that these measures may be manifestations of spy concerns and could be utilized to investigate "inappropriate contacts," impose travel restrictions, and potentially recruit new agents from the scientific community into intelligence services.

Russian authorities routinely bring scientists to trial under charges of treason. Notably, 16 scientists from the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences recently faced legal action under this charge, including those involved in the creation of hypersonic weapons.

Moreover, universities are subject to scrutiny from various authorities under different sections of the criminal or administrative code, all in the context of a wider crackdown. For instance, Russian police drew up protocols at the European University at St. Petersburg after finding books from "undesirable organizations," and the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office designated the Free University as "undesirable." Some universities also grapple with internal challenges to freedom of thought, such as the dismissal of a professor from St. Petersburg State University for his anti-war remarks.

You Might Also Like

Snow Penises Everywhere
  • November 07, 2023

Snow Penises Everywhere

Yekaterinburg students are decorating the city with giant phallic snow sculptures, angering authorities and residents alike.
The George Orwell Library
  • November 09, 2023

The George Orwell Library

A library in Ivanovo promotes intellectual growth and independent thought, offering literature from "foreign agents."
No More Music
  • November 08, 2023

No More Music

So far this year, Yandex.Music has eradicated more than 4000 bits of content.
Show and Shell
  • October 26, 2023

Show and Shell

A convicted murderer and Wagner mercenary was invited to talk to Russian students.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Marooned in Moscow
May 01, 2011

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.

Survival Russian
February 01, 2009

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955