Georgii Chementirov, 39, is an exiled journalist from Russia. He has been working and living in Kirkenes with his family for almost three years. He is one of around 1,500 Russian journalists who left their home country after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
‘Many Russians fled after the war began because they were afraid of having to go to the front themselves,’ explains Chementirov in a conversation in Kirkenes. For him, mobilisation was not the decisive reason for leaving the country. ‘I worked as a journalist against the Putin regime.’ In Russia, it was and still is forbidden to call the invasion of Ukraine and the occupation of parts of the country ‘war’. In addition, journalists should only use state sources for their research. ‘How was I supposed to continue working as a journalist?’ asks Georgii Chementirov. To make matters worse, he was chairman of the journalists' union in Karelia at the start of the war. ‘We were independent and didn't want to be taken in by the central trade union.’
"I have a family, I have children, I didn't want to go to prison. I saw the propaganda that was already being practised in kindergartens and schools." So he began to think about leaving his home country.
Chementirov applied for a job as an exiled journalist at the online media outlet ‘The Barents Observer’ based in Kirkenes and was accepted. He thinks of the many journalists still working in the country. ‘Many do an excellent and important job, but it's dangerous for them,’ he explains about ten kilometres from the Russian border. He comes from the historic region of Karelia, which has been divided by the border between Finland and Russia since the Second World War. His home town of Petrozavodsk lies around 400 kilometres north-east of St Petersburg and 1000 kilometres south of Kirkenes.
But the Russian power apparatus won't leave him alone, even in the safety of Norway. In March 2023, he was categorised as a ‘foreign agent’ by the Russian state. ‘Traditionally, the names of organisations and individuals who fall into this category are published every Friday evening,’ he explains. ‘We were celebrating my wife's birthday,’ he recalls the moment he found himself on the list. He estimates that 700 people and organisations are now affected. ‘The list of bans for this group of people is getting longer and longer, so that a normal life is no longer possible for these people in Russia.’
"But it also makes work more difficult for me in exile. My contacts in Russia think twice about giving me an interview as a foreign agent." Since February of this year, ‘The Barents Observer’, the medium for which he works in Norway, has been on the list of ‘Undesirable Foreign Organisations’. According to Wikipedia, 232 foreign and international non-governmental organisations and media were affected as of 5 June 2025. And the number is growing every day. For the journalist in Kirkenes, this means that he is cut off from his sources of information. "We have conducted hundreds of interviews with people in Russia to bring the truth to light. We no longer do that. It would be too dangerous for people." The work is becoming more difficult by the day. ‘They are always finding new ways to restrict our work.’
Chementirov tries to explain what it means to live and work as a journalist in exile. "It doesn't mean you leave your country and everything is fine. NO. We have a safe life abroad in the West, but the mental pressure on us journalists is great. "You can accuse me at any time. I have criticised Putin, written about the war, its economic and social consequences, the war crimes and much more. It's all forbidden."
The journalist thinks of his parents in Karelia. ‘What would happen to them if I were charged?’ Then he is silent for a moment and looks nervously out of the window. He knows that his parents share his political views. "It's difficult for my mum. She would like to have her family with her."
Meanwhile, he lives in Norway, is unable to visit his parents - luckily they can come to Norway - and tries both to provide people in Russia with information and to give the world an insight into the Russian system. "I realise that my articles don't change the world, but it's important that people know what's going on. The purpose of his work is to disseminate information and truths. He keeps getting feedback from Russia that the messages are still getting through and his articles are being read, even though ‘The Barents Observer’ is blocked in Russia.
What hopes does he have for his country? Mikhail Gorbachev, President of the Soviet Union from March 1990 to December 1991, is a sign for him that it is possible to break out of the corrupt and atrocious system and change something. ‘Gorbachev's ideas were good, but the way things went was bad,’ he summarises. ‘It's not just Putin who is the problem, but the whole corrupt system - from the army and the legislature to politics and propaganda.’ He finds it difficult to imagine how Russia could change in the foreseeable future without bloodshed. But one thing is clear to him: ‘Russia must lose the war and Ukraine must win.’
Chementirov is happy that he can work in his profession. It is more difficult for his wife. Her Russian qualification as a doctor is not recognised in Norway. That's why she works in a kindergarten. It is not always easy for his two children to find their way in their new life either. ‘I am the reason why we left our home country,’ he points out. But Norway is a good country to live in. The winter in Kirkenes could be a little shorter, but he can work - as a journalist.
