Finland threatens to deport Russian family to Ukraine because of passports issued in Crimea
Married couple Natalia Kushnarenko and Mikhail Berezhnoy received passports of Russian citizenship in the Crimea but they live in Finland. The Finnish authorities threatened the family with deportation to Ukraine, Yle reports.
The Finnish government emphasized that citizens are not allowed to receive a visa with Russian passport issued on the peninsula.
As RIA Novosti reports, the family arrived in Finland in September 2017 on tourist visas that were received at the Consulate General of Finland in St. Petersburg. Last September, they submitted documents for a residence permit on the basis of their registered company in Finland. Later, they received a response from the Finnish authorities, refusing to recognize a passport issued by the Crimean government.
RBC news agency quotes spokeswoman of the Russian embassy Natalia Vezhlivtseva, saying that the embassy “is closely monitoring the situation of the Russian family of Kushnarenko and Berezhnoy from Finland.” “The Russian citizens asked not to reveal any specific details of the actions carried out in the situation,” emphasized Vezhlivtseva.