MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/. The US State Department’s call for US nationals to refrain from visiting Russia and Belarus is yet another provocation by Washington, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Friday.
"This is yet another American provocation […] - [the call] for US nationals to refrain from visiting Russia or Belarus, or, vice versa, to leave if they are already there," she said during a briefing, commenting on a statement made earlier by the US Department of State.
Zakharova noted that the threats of arrest, the danger of being subjected to "harassment, mistreatment, extortion or arbitrary detention," that the US Department of State talks about "are actually characteristic of the discriminatory treatment that Russian nationals are being subjected to" in the US or any other country in light of the "unhealthy activity of US authorities."
The diplomat added that it is the US authorities who encourage the notorious "canceling" of everything Russian by initiating a real hunt for Russians for whom they have a complaint in third countries as well.
"Those unlucky enough to get caught in the grinder of the US punitive justice system risk receiving record prison terms, and losing their property," she noted.
"The current legislation is being changed in such a way as to make it possible to seize property from undesirable Russian nationals. I would especially like to emphasize that the recommendation to give the US a wide berth as a territory that is dangerous to live in, for life and limb is more relevant today than ever," Zakharova underscored.
On Monday, the US Embassy in Russia called on US nationals to immediately leave the country. US citizens were recommended to refrain from visiting Russia over alleged "unpredictable consequences" of the conflict in Ukraine; meanwhile, Americans already living or traveling in Russia should immediately leave the country over "risk of detention," the Embassy said. The Embassy also claimed that the Russian side "may deny US citizens recognition of dual citizenship, strip them of access to consular aid, mobilize them into the armed forces and prevent them from leaving the country.".