Russia wants to stay as far away as possible from the British Council, one of the most prestigious public institutions for studying the language of Shakespeare, Hemingway, and Bob Dylan.
Independent news outlet The Moscow Times reports that Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has declared the British Council an “undesirable organization”.
Any contact with the educational organization will be considered a crime, as the label “undesirable” is equated with “extremist” or “terrorist,” according to Russian laws that seek to persecute and criminalize dissent.
The British Council decided to end its educational activities in Russia when the war in Ukraine broke out. However, the walls are closing in, and fines or even imprisonment will be imposed on those taking English classes linked to the British Council.
“We do not operate in Russia. This ban is related to a change in Russian legislation affecting organizations linked to foreign governments that the Russian government considers undesirable,” the British Council states on its website, according to Spanish newspaper El País.
Furthermore, Russia will sanction any activity related to the institution, even if it occurs online or outside its borders. Russians will also be barred from taking the English language test, known as IELTS, an official certification that certifies language proficiency, according to The Moscow Times.
“Under the guise of conducting educational and cultural activities and teaching English […], it promotes British values and long-term interests in education, culture, and youth policy,” the Russian prosecutor’s office said in a statement, according to El País.
The future facing Russian students and scholars is one of fewer international academic opportunities and greater difficulties in obtaining visas if they want to live and work in English-speaking countries.
Russian authorities go further and consider that the educational institution supports and promotes the LGBTQ agenda, which is completely banned and repressed in Russia and has also been designated as an “extremist movement.”
The Russian Criminal Code stipulates that any contact with the institution, whether through posting or sharing content on social media, will result in a fine of up to 5,000 euros, 360 hours of forced labor, or up to five years in prison, according to El País.
Not only the British Council is included on Putin’s blacklist; other international institutions and NGOs have been declared “undesirable.” These include Amnesty International and the Elton John HIV Foundation.
