'The most terrifying 11 hours of my life': Readers describe crossing Russia's border
Independent outlet Meduza collected dozens of reader accounts of crossing Russia's border, many describing intensified screening, phone searches and hours-long waits, though some crossings went smoothly.
Meduza gathered dozens of accounts from readers about crossing Russia's border — both people living abroad visiting relatives and Russia-based residents traveling overseas. Experiences varied widely: some passed through without incident, while others described hours of interrogation, phone searches and detention in separate rooms.
Long waits and interrogations
One reader recalled waiting 11 hours in fall 2024 while his wife wiped his laptop remotely after he called her from strangers' phones. Another, visiting Russia in December 2025 for the first time since relocating to Israel in 2022, spent five hours undergoing airport checks, including four hours in a holding area while officers ran his phone through a device. He had prepared an old phone loaded with Russian apps and made sure it showed no connection to Ukraine.
Common questions and procedures
Multiple readers said border guards routinely ask about the purpose of travel, place of residence, relatives, and any contacts in Ukraine. Some were asked to unlock their phones and social media accounts, while others had fingerprints taken or were made to sign agreements to submit to a polygraph test if summoned later. One reader, fined in 2023 for discrediting the military, described being asked to sign such an agreement in August 2026 while flying from Mineralnye Vody to Armenia, under threat of missing his flight.
Not everyone faces trouble
Several readers reported smooth, uneventful crossings despite frequent travel, with no extra questioning or phone checks. Others said the bigger obstacle was not border screening itself but long queues at road crossings, where waits reportedly stretched up to 17 hours.
