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Russian security officers were waiting at Moscow airport when a flight carrying people deported from the United States landed in December. Among them were Russians whose asylum claims had been rejected, including anti-war activists, the BBC reported.
One deportee, identified by the BBC as Katya, said she had left Russia two years earlier and sought asylum in the United States. Her name has been changed because she remains in Russia.
Katya said officers from Russia’s FSB questioned her and other passengers for several hours. She said male deportees were given military documents instructing them to register with local enlistment offices, from which men are often sent to fight in Ukraine. Another passenger and an activist confirmed her account.
During her questioning, Katya said officers found information on her phone that they considered incriminating. She was eventually released to stay with relatives, but said police continued to call and visit her.
US removals of Russian nationals rose from 222 in 2023 to more than 1,200 in 2025, amid a broader increase in deportations during President Donald Trump’s second term. Activists say those returned have included dissidents and Russian army deserters, some of whom were imprisoned or sent to war.
Anti-war activist Leonid Melekhin was deported to Russia last year after seeking asylum in the United States. Following his return, he was charged with “justifying terrorism” and sentenced to six years in prison, according to the report.
Deportations rise in Europe
Andrei Pivovarov of Russia’s exiled Anti-War Committee said there were several cases of people receiving eight-year prison sentences after crossing back into Russia. His organisation has changed its guidance to dissidents, saying the European Union is no longer a safe place to seek refuge.
German government figures show that seven Russian nationals were deported from Germany in 2023, compared with more than 110 in 2025. More than 21,000 Russians applied for asylum in Germany between 2022 and 2025. The share receiving a positive decision fell from 29% in 2023 to 6.8% in the first 11 months of 2025.
Germany’s migration and asylum agency, BAMF, told the BBC that protection is granted only when there is an actual, well-founded fear of persecution. Berlin suspended its humanitarian visa programme for Russians last year. Across the European Union, the proportion of Russian applicants granted some form of asylum protection declined from 23% in 2024 to about 17% in the first nine months of 2025, according to EU data.
Lawyer Anastasia Burakova, founder of rights group Kovcheg (Ark), said Western governments were limiting humanitarian programmes and asylum access amid public concern and growing support for right-wing populist parties.
Former Russian soldier Artyom, who deserted in 2022 after officers threatened to send him to Ukraine, said he provided US authorities with evidence of a criminal investigation against him in Russia. He was nevertheless put on a deportation flight to Moscow via Egypt.
Artyom said he was held at a military detention facility in Moscow but escaped and is now hiding abroad. The US Department of Homeland Security told the BBC that people found by a judge to have no right to remain in the country would be removed.
The Russian human rights group Memorial said repression in Russia had reached an “unprecedented level”. Its list of political prisoners grew from 803 to 1,265 during 2025, a record increase. The Russian Embassy in London did not respond to a request for comment.
Finnish asylum decisions leave couple fearing return
Anti-war activist Mikhail and his wife, Dasha, are awaiting deportation from Finland, according to the BBC. Their names have been changed because Mikhail fears for relatives in Russia.
Mikhail said Russian authorities blocked his social media accounts over anti-war posts, while police visited his mother and accused him of spreading “fake information”. Dasha is a Jehovah’s Witness, a religious group banned as “extremist” in Russia.
The couple provided Finnish authorities with evidence, including a video in which police tell Mikhail’s mother that more than 300 of his posts had violated Russian law. The Finnish Immigration Service rejected their asylum request five times, finding no reasonable basis to believe they would face serious rights violations if returned.
Amnesty International, which is supporting the couple, said they could face a real risk of detention, prosecution, imprisonment and torture. The Finnish Immigration Service said asylum decisions were based on international refugee law standards and that the share of Russian citizens granted asylum was in line with EU averages.
Burakova’s organisation said requests for help from Russians seeking to leave rose tenfold in August compared with May. The report also noted rumours that Vladimir Putin may announce a new mobilisation, which the Kremlin denies. The previous mobilisation in 2022 prompted hundreds of thousands of Russians to leave, many for former Soviet states including Armenia and Georgia.
