U.S. non-governmental organizations pull out of Russia; relocate to Lithuania

Washington, DC, United States (4E) – Amid possible fears over being prosecuted under a new treason law, two American non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on Wednesday halted their work and pulled out staff from Russia.

Among the staff were a few Russian citizens along with the NGOs’ directors Tamerlan Kurbanov and Natalia Budayeva, who moved to Lithuania with their families.

If Moscow’s business Kommersant daily is to be believed, the Russian Federal Security Agency had asked the directors of these NGOs to relocate their office from the country for safety reasons.

Last July, the Lower House of Russian Parliament approved a law to restrict activities of NGOs like the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the country.

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