Russia is preparing a ‘loyalty agreement’ requirement for foreigners.

The Russian Ministry of the Interior has created a draft law requiring foreign nationals to sign a “loyalty agreement” prohibiting them from criticizing government policies, denigrating the history of the Soviet military, or engaging in activities that go against traditional family values.

Since President Vladimir Putin issued the order to send soldiers to Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has enacted several stringent regulations that make it illegal to disparage the military. Additionally, courts have handed out lengthy prison terms to opposition activists.

As the presidential election of 2024 draws near, Vladimir Putin has framed the conflict as an existential conflict with the West. He has stated that he would preserve Russia’s “sacred” culture from what he considers to be the decadence of the West.

The interior ministry created the proposed law, according to a story published by the state news agency TASS on Wednesday. The draft legislation would require all foreigners entering Russia to sign an agreement that would restrict what they are allowed to say in public environments.

A foreigner who enters Russia would be barred from “interfering with the activities of public authorities of the Russian Federation, discrediting in any form the foreign and domestic state policy of the Russian Federation, public authorities, and their officials,” according to TASS. This prohibition would apply to any foreigner who entered Russia.

The provisions that would be included in the proposed agreement are those concerning morals, family, “propaganda about non-traditional sexual relations,” and history.

In particular, it would be prohibited for individuals from other countries to “distort the historical truth about the feat of the Soviet people in the defense of the Fatherland and its contribution to the victory over fascism.”

It is believed that the Soviet Union suffered a loss of at least 27 million people during World War II. Eventually, the Soviet Union was successful in driving Nazi forces back to Berlin. Following that, governments sympathetic to Moscow came to power over large portions of Eastern Europe.

According to reports from Russian media outlets, it was not obvious who foreigners would be subject to the proposed legislation if it were to become law, nor was it apparent what the consequences would be for those who did not adhere to the “agreement” that visitors would be required to sign when entering Russia from outside the country.

The Kremlin did not provide a statement about the project.

The phrase “LOYALTY AGREEMENT”

Over many months, opposition activists and foreign diplomats stationed in Moscow have been sounding the alarm that the authorities are taking a more extreme stance against any kind of protest in the run-up to the presidential election.

At the beginning of this month, the Kremlin issued a statement stating that there was a need for some level of censorship because Russian forces were engaged in combat in Ukraine. They also warned those interested in criticizing the military to give serious consideration before doing so.

The proposal must first be presented to the State Duma, the lower chamber of the Russian parliament. Then it must be subjected to committee examination and many readings before it can be presented to Putin for his signature. Only then will the text be considered finalized.

It was stated by the head of the Committee on CIS Affairs of the Duma that the draft law had reached a significant level of development and was now being worked on by the Interior Ministry, the government, the Presidential Administration, and his committee.

“The draft law on the so-called ‘loyalty agreement’ with migrants entering the Russian Federation is in a high state of readiness,” Leonid Kalashnikov told Interfax. “The agreement is not a loyalty agreement.”

According to Kalashnikov, not all of the proposed bill’s provisions have yet been worked out. In response to demands for a statement, the Ministry of the Interior did not immediately respond.

According to searches conducted by Reuters on the Duma database, the measure has not yet been legally tabled in parliament with the desired effect.

Russia has put a variety of limitations on foreigners from what it refers to as “unfriendly countries” ever since the beginning of its conflict in Ukraine. These countries are those that have imposed sanctions on Russia as a result of its war in Ukraine.