Officers of Estonia’s border checkpoint denied entry to a Russian journalist, employee of an Arkhangelsk news outlet 29.ru, and witness in a case against Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, Yaroslav Varenik, and revoked his visa, Novaya Gazeta. Europe has learned from the journalist himself.
“I was on my way to Tallinn. Russian border guards questioned me for two and half hours. Afterwards, I had to wait for the next bus, i.e. I spent around seven hours there. Then, Estonian border guards asked me to go with them for another interview.
“They inspected all my things, saw that I had three expired press cards with me, took them, and carried them, together with my ID, to another room. Then, they asked me to clarify where I was planning on staying. I showed them my reservation [at a hotel]. Then, they called me in for another interview and asked what exactly I was planning on doing in Estonia. And they reacted with annoyance when I answered, they kept asking to describe everything in greater detail.
“And then they revoked my visa and denied me entry due to the fact that my hotel reservation had been cancelled today at 10AM. As far as I understand, [it was cancelled] because I booked a hotel room without paying in advance, and the card that was linked to my account is Russian and can’t be used to make international transfers. Thus, at 10AM my reservation was cancelled, and at 10AM I was denied entry to Estonia,” Yaroslav Varenik told us.
The journalist’s visa was issued by Estonia.
Furthermore, Varenik said on his Instagram account that, during the interview with Russian border guards, he was asked about his views on the war, shown copies of documents about Ukrainian armed groups, and threatened with a criminal case over offending religious believers. The guards also read his chats on various messengers. Additionally, Russian border guards screamed at him: “Are you stupid?” Later, they gave him a chocolate bar.
In 2019, employees of Russia’s Investigative Committee searched Varenik’s flat in relation to the case of “money laundering” through the Anti-Corruption Foundation, which politician Alexey Navalny had been charged with. The journalist’s phone, hard drive, documents, and notebook were seized. Later, his bank account was arrested.
In the same month, an administrative case over desecration of religious symbols was opened against Varenik after he had posted a music video of the Polish black metal band Batushka on his Vkontakte page (the biggest Russian social media website - translator’s note). Several months later, the case was closed — experts found publication of the music video to not be against the law.
