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Novaya Gazeta Europe
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Return to sender. St. Petersburg is the latest place in Russia to contemplate banning migrants from working as couriers or taxi drivers — Novaya Gazeta Europe
Russia's second city St. Petersburg could find itself facing a huge labour shortage following a ban on migrants working as taxi or delivery drivers that was due to come into force at the start of the month. Though the legislation has been postponed, the city government has indicated that the ban is 'at the approval stage' and will be introduced at a later date. Given that over half of all couriers in the city are migrants, and about 70% of the city's taxi drivers come from Central Asia, not only is the ban fundamentally racist, but is also likely to raise the cost of living for city residents. The new legislation has not been welcomed by all, with several members of St. Petersburg's Legislative Assembly voicing their opposition. While some are confident that banning migrants from carrying out these two key roles will benefit Russians, others warn that migrant labour is crucial to the viability of the city's economy and business leaders have warned that the legislation will negatively affect the quality and accessibility of taxi and delivery services across the city. Last spring, amid increased checks on migrants, especially those from Tajikistan, Ilham and his wife were afraid to stay in Russia and seriously considered returning home. Ilham, a young man from Tajikistan, says that he and his family will have to leave Russia if the rules are enforced. Over the past 18 months, Ilham has had to leave Russia three times due to increasing restrictions on migrants. He views Russia's attitude towards foreign workers as unfair: 'When Russia needs hard or dirty work done, they need us right away. When the authorities need to punish someone, they need us again. If this is politics, I don't get it: why bite the hand that feeds you?' Ilham and his family first came to St. Petersburg from Tajikistan five years ago. After initially working on construction sites, Ilham started working seven days a week as a driver for a taxi company, having taken out a loan to buy a car. A migrant worker in St. Petersburg. Following the Crocus City Hall terror attack in Moscow in March 2024, which led to rising xenophobia and aggression towards migrants, Ilham began to be concerned about how welcome he was in Russia. 'Every second passenger cancelled their trip. Eventually, they stopped cancelling trips, but if I started talking, they would ask where I was from. Once I told them I was from Tajikistan, polite passengers would stop talking, but others would start speaking as if it was all my fault.' Last spring, amid increased checks on migrants, especially those from Tajikistan, Ilham and his wife were afraid to stay in Russia and seriously considered returning home. The only thing that stopped them from leaving was the loan he had used to buy his car. In a deliberate effort to target migrant taxi drivers, the Russian authorities restricted the types of car permitted for use as taxis. Once the xenophobic vitriol gradually began to subside, Ilham thought he could stay on in Russia after all. However, in a deliberate effort to target migrant taxi drivers, the Russian authorities restricted the types of car permitted for use as taxis. As Ilham's car doesn't meet these requirements, he has decided to buy a second car on credit in order to be able to continue working. Then, early last month, Ilham learned that migrants in St. Petersburg would face a blanket ban on working as taxi drivers and couriers. While he is yet to receive official confirmation from the company he works for, Ilham — like many of his colleagues — is resigned to leaving, saying 'there's nothing else I can do about it'. St. Petersburg deputies first began discussing banning migrant workers from being drivers and couriers in February, and the man behind the ban, United Russia State Duma Deputy Mikhail Romanov, has repeatedly claimed, without providing any statistical evidence, that migrants do not speak proper Russian, do not know the law, often violate traffic regulations, drive on pavements, and are responsible for a large number of car accidents. Courier service in St. Petersburg. At the end of March, law enforcement agencies began cracking down on illegal migrants living in the city. The Interior Ministry announced a month-long series of raids in St. Petersburg, and by the end of April, reported that 1,286 illegal migrants had been found working as couriers. Of those, 520 were placed in detention centres to await deportation, while the rest were charged with working illegally. The large-scale raid was less an attempt by the authorities to regulate the courier industry, and more of a performative way of demonstrating the harsh line being taken by the government on illegal immigration. While all taxi and courier companies are busy making sure that they comply with the legislation within three months, St. Petersburg deputies are attempting to extend the ban into next year. Draft legislation already being prepared at the time of the raids stipulated that St. Petersburg delivery services and taxi companies had to test their employees on traffic regulations, but stopped short of banning migrant workers from the two sectors. When the draft legislation was published on 28 May, however, the legislation had transformed into a ban. The law, which is to remain in place until the end of 2025, shocked those who opposed it, not least as not all migrants will be banned from working in the two spheres: EU citizens and anyone with refugee status or permanent residency is exempt. While all taxi and courier companies are busy making sure that they comply with the legislation within three months, St. Petersburg deputies are attempting to extend the ban into next year. Courier service in St. Petersburg. Variations on a theme Deputies first submitted a proposal to exclude Central Asian migrants from delivery, taxi services, catering, public transport and other jobs in October 2023, introducing a bill to the State Duma, calling for these jobs to be freed up for Russians and arguing that the move would also improve domestic security. The authorities in nine Russian regions — Kurgan, Kaluga, Kaliningrad, Tula, Tyumen, Magadan, Chelyabinsk, Krasnodar and the Khanty-Mansiysk autonomous district — promptly decided to ban foreigners from working as drivers, couriers, cooks or waiters. Other Russian regions soon followed suit, all with their own local twist, and there are now regions where migrants from former Soviet states cannot work in schools, healthcare, retail or even on construction sites. A 2024 ban on migrants from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Moldova and Azerbaijan working as couriers and taxi drivers in the Leningrad region, which surrounds St. Petersburg, was quietly abandoned in 2025. While 51 of Russia's 88 regions now ban migrants from certain professional spheres, an increase of 11 regions since last year according to the Russian Interior's Ministry, these bans have not been trouble free, with Yakutia, in the Russian Far East, moving to lift its recently introduced ban due to an acute manpower deficit in the region, which it hopes to remedy by readmitting workers from Central Asia to the workforce. Likewise, a 2024 ban on migrants from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Moldova and Azerbaijan working as couriers and taxi drivers in the Leningrad region, which surrounds St. Petersburg, was quietly abandoned in 2025. A St. Petersburg taxi. Passing on costs Uzbek couriers who spoke to Novaya Europe said that their managers had informed them in mid-June that they might be laid off. There is still hope on both sides that either the law will be repealed or won't be properly enforced, but if that's not the case, then the ban will affect those in all walks of society. 'The initiative will negatively affect the quality and availability of taxi and delivery services,' Yandex said in a statement issued in late May, following the publication of the draft resolution 'A significant reduction in the number of drivers will lead to an average 10–15% increase in prices. And increasing demand for deliveries while reducing the number of couriers will more than double the cost.' They hope the St. Petersburg draft resolution will remain just that — a draft. It isn't just taxi companies employing migrants that will feel the consequences. Businesses that lease cars to migrants to work as taxi drivers will also face difficulties. The new requirements will also affect small and medium-sized businesses, such as cafés and restaurants, which have increased sales thanks to such services. St. Petersburg delivery services have unanimously argued that it's irrelevant how many migrants work as couriers, but the fact that their departure will lead to an increase in labour costs that will be passed on to the customer, isn't. They hope the St. Petersburg draft resolution will remain just that — a draft — and that the authorities will come up with a compromise solution acceptable for both business and customers.
Russia Today
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Moscow concert hall massacre suspects say Ukraine ordered attack
Suspects in last year's deadly terrorist attack on a concert hall near Moscow have told investigators that the massacre was ordered by Ukraine, Russian media reported on Sunday, citing interrogation transcripts. On March 22, 2024, four gunmen opened fire inside the Crocus City Hall music venue and set the building ablaze, killing 149 people and injuring more than 600. All four assailants were captured hours later while attempting to flee by car toward Ukraine, according to investigators. Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), a regional branch of the Islamic State jihadist group, claimed responsibility for the massacre. The alleged attackers – Dalerdhzon Mirzoyev, Saidokrami Rachabalizoda, Shamsiddin Fariduni, and Muhammadsobir Faizov – are all citizens of Tajikistan. According to the case files cited by the media, the suspects told investigators that 'a Ukrainian state entity' had ordered the attack, while ISIS-K served as the direct organizer. They reportedly said the weapons used in the massacre had come from Ukrainian territory. RIA Novosti reported that Rachabalizoda told investigators the handler known to the group as 'Saifullo' instructed them to escape to Kiev, where each was promised around $13,000. The suspects also allegedly said their handlers were based in Türkiye and Afghanistan. According to TASS, one of the suspects claimed the handlers intended the operation to appear as if it had been carried out solely on behalf of ISIS-K. Ukraine has denied any involvement in the Crocus City Hall attack. However, Kiev has previously acknowledged carrying out targeted assassinations, sabotaging infrastructure, and blowing up rail tracks on Russian territory. One such act of sabotage in late May caused a passenger train derailment that killed five people and injured more than 100.
Russia Today
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Moscow concert hall massacre carried out ‘in the interest' of Ukraine
Last year's terrorist attack on a concert hall outside Moscow, which killed nearly 150 people, was intended to destabilize Russia to Ukraine's benefit, Russia's Investigative Committee (Sledkom) said on Monday, marking the conclusion of its criminal investigation. On March 22, 2024, four gunmen opened fire inside the Crocus City Hall concert venue and set the building ablaze, killing 149 people and injuring 609 others. One person remains missing. According to Sledkom, all of the attackers were detained after fleeing the scene and attempting to reach Ukraine by car. All 19 individuals charged in connection with the attack are ethnic Tajiks. The four alleged gunmen – Dalerdhzon Mirzoyev, Saidokrami Rachabalizoda, Shamsiddin Fariduni, and Muhammadsobir Faizov – are citizens of Tajikistan. Although the Islamic State's Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), a regional offshoot of the Islamic State jihadist group, claimed responsibility for the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested at the time that Ukraine may have played a role. Kiev has denied any involvement. 'This heinous crime was planned and carried out in the interest of Ukraine's leadership, with the goal of destabilizing the political situation in our country,' Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said. She confirmed that the accused are members of ISIS-K. Petrenko added that some of the suspects received training abroad and had also planned to attack 'an entertainment venue' in the city of Kaspiysk, located in the Muslim-majority Russian republic of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea. Russia has experienced a recent surge in Islamist terrorism, including a June 2024 attack on several synagogues and Christian churches in Derbent, Dagestan, which left 27 people dead.
Indian Express
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Can India rely on Russia to diplomatically isolate Pakistan? It seems unlikely
Written by Aleksei Zakharov The status of India-Russia relations as a 'strategic and privileged partnership' has always imposed additional expectations on how the relationship should progress and how the two sides should support each other in difficult times. Contrary to this logic, there has been a gradual erosion of the convergence of geopolitical views between Moscow and New Delhi, with fewer signs of alignment on global, regional and strategic issues. This has led to their stance towards each other being subject to more diverse interpretations. The Russian official response to the Pahalgam terrorist attack and Operation Sindoor is a case in point. At first glance, it looks as though Moscow ticked all the right boxes in its response. Russian President Vladimir Putin quickly condemned the terrorist attack as a 'brutal crime' with 'no justification whatsoever' and expressed hope that the perpetrators would face a 'deserved punishment'. Subsequently, he reached out to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reiterate his condemnation of the 'barbaric terrorist attack in Pahalgam' and emphasise the need to 'uncompromisingly fight terrorism in all its forms'. This strong language from the Russian leader is unsurprising, given that Russia itself has fallen victim to major terrorist attacks in the past, such as the Crocus City Hall attack in the Moscow region in March 2024. When India launched Operation Sindoor, Russia called on New Delhi and Islamabad 'to exercise restraint' and 'resolve their differences through peaceful, political and diplomatic means on a bilateral basis'. While the Russian response was generally perceived as an act of solidarity with India, there are some nuances that require further scrutiny. Firstly, while Indian diplomats were engaged in a series of phone calls with various foreign partners, it took over 10 days for the Russian and Indian foreign ministers to hold a telephone conversation. This delay stood in contrast with New Delhi's many other diplomatic engagements in the days following the Pahalgam attack. Secondly, as with the reaction to the 2019 Pulwama terrorist attack, Moscow once again attempted to strike a balance between New Delhi and Islamabad, offering 'to contribute to a political settlement' if both sides 'are mutually willing'. Despite being well aware that Delhi rejects third-party mediation and insists that Kashmir is a bilateral issue, Moscow continues to offer its services as a crisis broker, which obviously plays into Pakistan's hands. Thirdly, since Moscow and Islamabad have expanded their areas and levels of cooperation over the last decade, Russia is no longer in a position to put pressure on Pakistan regarding cross-border terrorism. With Russian and Pakistani special forces now conducting annual anti-terrorist exercises and foreign ministry officials highlighting the 'positive dynamics' and prospects of counter-terrorism cooperation, it is unlikely that Moscow would publicly call out Islamabad, even if it does suspect the Pakistani intelligence services of having links to terrorist groups operating in Kashmir. Russia's pragmatic stance following the Pahalgam attack also stems from its continued reliance on the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in its broader strategy for Eurasia. Despite the organisation failing to bring about any tangible changes to the regional security situation and not leading to the improvement of India-Pakistan relations as some in Russia had expected, Moscow still sees the SCO as a key mechanism for Eurasian integration. This approach means Russian diplomacy is forced to tread carefully between New Delhi and Islamabad, both of which have been SCO members since 2017. Despite the common wisdom that Russia's foreign policy, including its shifting approach to South Asia, may be under Chinese sway, there is no solid evidence to confirm this. Indeed, there have been instances of trilateral coordination between China, Pakistan and Russia, such as their consultations on Afghanistan, which have recently evolved into a quadrilateral format with the inclusion of Iran. Furthermore, in late April 2025, Moscow and Beijing discussed the security situation in South Asia, which undoubtedly included the rising tensions between India and Pakistan. However, Russia has not bought into the China-Pakistan narrative of holding 'a fair and just investigation' into the Pahalgam attack; instead, it has advocated a joint 'fight against the global terrorist threat' together with India. The level of cooperation between Russia and Pakistan is nowhere near that of India and Russia. While India and Russia have a long-standing partnership spanning various sectors that has weathered many storms, Moscow's engagement with Islamabad is still in its infancy and is hampered by Pakistan's cash-strapped economy and unstable domestic politics. Whereas Russia has shared with India its cutting-edge defence systems, such as the S-400, which have proven instrumental in bolstering India's defence against Pakistan's air strikes. There is nothing as substantial in sight in Russia's dealings with Pakistan. That said, Russia has acted as a neutral party in the recent India-Pakistan conflict. While India can still rely on Russia's emotional diplomacy, Moscow seems to stop halfway when it comes to providing political support for Delhi's case, steering clear of making any critical remarks towards Islamabad and Rawalpindi. India must take this into account when preparing for a future crisis. The writer is a Fellow with the Strategic Studies Programme at Observer Research Foundation
Reuters
28-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Russia's Severstal warns of construction risks as region bans migrant labour
MOSCOW, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Russian steelmaker Severstal ( opens new tab on Friday slammed a decision by a regional governor to ban migrant workers in the construction industry and said the move could cause serious harm to industrial projects. The company reacted swiftly and sharply to the ban, announced in a decree on Thursday by Georgy Filimonov, governor of the Vologda region northwest of Moscow. The rare public clash between a powerful regional politician and a major business highlights Russia's reliance on migrant workers and the difficulties that companies are facing as the country grapples with a widespread shortage of labour. "Such measures jeopardise the implementation of dozens of construction projects, both in the region's industrial and social spheres," Severstal said in a statement on the ban. It said the move would "seriously complicate" its plan to build a low-pollution iron ore factory in Cherepovets, a major city in the region, where it plans to invest over 120 billion roubles ($1.36 billion) this year, and could jeopardise a contract with a Chinese supplier. Heavy recruitment by the armed forces and defence industries has drawn workers away from civilian enterprises, and hundreds of thousands of Russians have left the country since President Vladimir Putin sent his army into Ukraine in 2022. With unemployment at a record low of 2.3%, Putin has flagged labour shortages as a major economic problem. Filimonov, the Vologda governor, did not state the grounds for the migrant ban, but he has publicly questioned why businesses cannot recruit local workers. Migrant workers from Central Asia have described growing hostility towards them in Russia since Islamist militants from Tajikistan attacked the Crocus City Hall, a concert venue near Moscow, killing 145 people, in March 2024. Nationalist politicians are ratcheting up rhetoric against foreigners and pushing legislation that impacts the lives of migrants working in Russia or those wanting to do so. Filimonov in October published a video showing workers putting the finishing touches to a new, life-sized statue of Soviet-era leader Josef Stalin. Videos previously published by Filimonov demonstrate an affinity for Soviet leaders, and photographs of secret police chiefs Lavrentiy Beria and Felix Dzerzhinsky hang on the walls of his office. He has dubbed a painting of himself shaking hands with Stalin, which hangs in his reception room, as "conceptual". Severstal said its repeated efforts to engage with the regional administration had been rebuffed. "Instead of constructive interaction, we were confronted with the distortion of facts, manipulation and a refusal to comply with agreements already reached," Severstal said. ($1 = 88.4500 roubles)
