Politics U.S. Warns American Citizens in Russia to Evacuate Immediately as Ukraine War Anniversary Nears The new travel advisory warns that Americans with dual citizenship in Russia could also be forced to join the military's invasion of Ukraine By Virginia Chamlee Virginia Chamlee Virginia Chamlee is a Politics Writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE for three years. Her work has previously appeared in The Washington Post, Buzzfeed, Eater, and other outlets. People Editorial Guidelines Published on February 13, 2023 12:30PM EST Photo: NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty A new travel advisory issued by the U.S. Embassy in Russia advises Americans not to travel to Russia or, if there already, to "depart immediately." The advisory comes as the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine nears. According to the advisory, "due to the unpredictable consequences of the unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russian military forces," Americans in Russia face harassment, unlawful detention, and the possibility of terrorism. What's more, Americans in Russia could be subject to mobilization and conscripted into the Russian military. Zelenskyy Remembers How His Family Woke Him Up to Say a War Had Started The advisory notes that, in September, the Russian government partially mobilized citizens to the armed forces in support of its invasion. "Russia may refuse to acknowledge dual nationals' U.S. citizenship, deny their access to U.S. consular assistance, subject them to mobilization, prevent their departure from Russia, and/or conscript them," the advisory added. The recent mobilization — which saw Russian citizens in the military reserve or those with military experience being called to active duty — marked the county's first military mobilization since World War II. In calling for the partial mobilization in September, Russian President Vladimir Putin also made veiled threats that have raised fears the autocrat could turn to nuclear weapons. "When the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our people. It's not a bluff," Putin said, per a Reuters report. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer. Recent reports have claimed that Russian soldiers are suffering from exhaustion and a lack of resources, though U.S. officials have been cautious about suggesting Putin could withdraw from the region. In a Friday press briefing, John Kirby, spokesperson for the National Security Council, said the Putin's attacks on Ukraine could get even "more vicious" as winter wanes and the weather improves. "Clearly, as we've seen over the last 12 hours, [Putin is] willing to continue to barrage the country with cruise missiles, knocking out civilian infrastructure, and trying to make life more difficult for the Ukrainian people," Kirby said. "And we do believe that he will try to take advantage of these winter months to restock, resupply, rearm, contribute to his manpower in — in what could be offensive — renewed offensive operations come spring." U.S. Embassy in Ukraine Urges Americans to Leave Country Immediately: 'Conditions May Deteriorate' Russian forces launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, with the invasion drawing condemnation around the world and increasingly severe economic sanctions against Russia and its leaders, including Putin himself. Details of the fighting have changed by the day, with scores of civilians reported dead or wounded, including children, though the actual number of deaths is difficult to determine. More than 7 million have fled the country as refugees — and half are children, according to the United Nations. Millions more have been displaced inside Ukraine. The Russian attack on Ukraine is an evolving story, with information changing quickly. Follow PEOPLE's complete coverage of the war here, including stories from citizens on the ground and ways to help.