Russia on Mar. 31 designated Tufts University and The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy as undesirable organizations, a move that effectively bars the institutions from operating in the country and can punish Russians who work with them. Tufts said the designation would prevent the university and Fletcher from having any activities or presence in Russia.
The Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation said Tufts and Fletcher had become instruments of anti-Russian propaganda. In its statement, the office said the institutions undermine public trust in Russia’s leadership, law enforcement agencies and the Russian Armed Forces, and create conditions conducive to protest sentiments and the radicalization of society. It also accused them of pushing a pro-LGBTQ+ agenda in order to destroy traditional family and moral values of Russians.
Tufts warned in a Friday community message that anyone affiliated with a designated organization could face criminal penalties under Russia’s undesirable organizations statute. The university also discouraged all travel to Russia. The law, signed by President Vladimir Putin in 2015, allows the Russian government to target foreign groups it considers a threat to the constitutional order, the defense capability of the country or the security of the state.
The designation means a banned organization cannot legally open offices or run programs in Russia, and Russians are forbidden from interacting with it, including cooperating with, working for, donating to or publicly supporting it. Initial violations typically bring hefty fines, while repeated involvement can lead to criminal charges and prison sentences of up to six years. Russia tied the move to Tufts’ support for Ukraine and to alleged pro-LGBTQ+ advocacy, even though the LGBTQ+ movement itself was designated a terrorist organization in Russia in 2023.
Students and faculty said the decision would mostly hit students with Russian citizenship and could discourage Russian applicants from choosing Tufts. One Tufts undergraduate from Russia said they were unsure how the designation would affect their travel, and the extent to which Russian nationals already enrolled at the university would be affected was not immediately clear.
For Tufts, the practical effect is immediate and severe: Russia has cut off the school’s formal room to operate there, and any Russian student or affiliate now has to weigh an ordinary academic connection against the threat of fines or prison. That is the leverage Moscow intended to create.
