view of the US Embassy on Novinsky Boulevard on the day Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken are scheduled to meet for security talks in Geneva.
The US Embassy in Moscow.Photo by Vladimir GerdoTASS via Getty Images
  • The State Department warned Americans to avoid traveling to Russia because they could be harassed.
  • Officials said citizens should leave Russia "immediately" by using any commercial means of travel available. 
  • Meanwhile, non-emergency staffers in Moscow have been authorized for voluntary departure.

The US State Department warned citizens to avoid traveling to Russia because government security officials could target them for "harassment" as the country reels from sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine.

In a new advisory posted on Monday, officials warned of "the potential for harassment against US citizens by Russian government security officials" and "the embassy's limited ability to assist U.S. citizens in Russia."

Officials warned US citizens to leave Russia "immediately" by using any commercial means of transportation available. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that the US is authorizing the voluntary departure of non-emergency embassy staffers and their family members.

He also said the US is closing down its embassy in Belarus. A senior US official told the Washington Post that Belarus was preparing to send troops to join the invasion of Ukraine. 

Read the original article on Business Insider