July 10, 2024

Baikal, not Bali


Baikal, not Bali
Final sitting of spring session, Seventh Convocation of State Duma. duma.gov.ru, Wikimedia Commons.

The State Duma of the Russian Federation has banned deputies and senators from traveling abroad without permission, adopting a law that allows for the early termination of their powers if they do so. The law was passed "in the first reading and in general," according to the Russian parliament's website.

The law takes effect upon publication and requires senators and deputies to obtain approval from an internal authority before traveling outside Russia. This rule does not apply to business trips.

"We will have to justify where the person is going, but if he goes to Baikal, we will all support him; to the Volga, we will be happy. But if the islands are the Maldives or Bali, colleagues, nothing personal," said State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin. Volodin also directed the Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption to consider extending the travel ban for deputies and senators for several years after their terms end.

Vasily Piskarev, head of the Duma Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption and a co-author of the law, said the measure was motivated by security concerns for both the state and those traveling abroad, likely in the wake of Russia's War on Ukraine.

Before the law's adoption, the Federation Council's Committee issued a warning in September 2023 to Senator Lyudmila Narusova against unauthorized trips to NATO countries. Vyacheslav Timchenko, head of the Upper House's Rules Committee, noted that Narusova traveled to Istanbul, Turkey, and Nice, France, in July 2023.

Additionally, in January 2023, the Russian newspaper Kommersant reported that regional authorities had recommended officials and deputies avoid foreign travel. For instance, Oleg Kuvshinnikov, governor of the Vologda Oblast, said, "In such a difficult time for the country, spending vacations at luxury resorts and publicly posting provocative photographs on social networks is unacceptable for officials." On January 11, Ulyanovsk Oblast Governor Alexey Russkikh signed a decree advising regional and municipal officials to refrain from traveling abroad during holidays amid the war in Ukraine. This came after several scandals involving regional politicians posting vacation photos from Mexico and Dubai on social media.

You Might Also Like

Small-Town Russia and the War
  • July 02, 2024

Small-Town Russia and the War

Sociologists spent a month living in small-town Russia to understand how Russians feel about the war in Ukraine.
Russia Readies for More War
  • July 07, 2024

Russia Readies for More War

Russian president Vladimir Putin says that the armed forces need to shore up in case of some explosive international developments.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

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.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

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.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, 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