Pärnu Russian resident deemed security threat loses court battle to stay in Estonia

The Tallinn Administrative Court has upheld the cancellation of the long-term residence permit of 54-year-old Russian citizen Alexei Fyodorov, who lived in Pärnu and was identified by the Estonian Internal Security Service (KAPO) as a threat to state security. Fyodorov had resided in Estonia since 1993 but was found to have undergone paramilitary training in Moscow and spread pro-Kremlin narratives online. The court ruled that national security concerns outweigh his right to private and family life.

The Tallinn Administrative Court has dismissed a legal challenge by Alexei Fyodorov, a 54-year-old Russian citizen who lived in Pärnu, after the Estonian Internal Security Service (KAPO) identified him as a threat to state security. The Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) had revoked his long-term residence permit on 12 August 2024, and the court found this decision fully justified.

Paramilitary Training in Moscow

According to KAPO, Fyodorov made regular trips to Russia during which he attended training courses in Moscow covering tactical medicine, weapons handling, communications, martial arts, and survival in extreme conditions. The security service also flagged his role as the founder of the Pärnu-based MTÜ Airsoft Panther Club, which KAPO assessed as a gathering point for young people with pro-Russian views, and a potential platform for building a group with military-tactical skills.

Pro-Kremlin Activity and Warnings Ignored

The court also took into account Fyodorov's public conduct. KAPO records show he had been involved in organising 9 May commemorations in Pärnu since 2008, at which Soviet and Russian symbols were used. In 2023, KAPO held a preventive conversation with him, yet he continued posting prohibited military symbols on social media and was subsequently fined by police. He was also issued a formal KAPO warning that year, which he chose to ignore.

Fyodorov publicly supported Russia's actions against Ukraine, including after the full-scale invasion in 2022. He referred to the war as a «special military operation», encouraged his followers to display the flag of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic as their avatar, and claimed that accepting Ukrainian war refugees was causing «Nazism to raise its head» in Estonia.

Family Ties Weighed Against Security

Fyodorov's defence lawyer argued that the PPA had violated procedure by cancelling his permit on the same day it received KAPO's materials, without first hearing Fyodorov's own account. The defence stressed that he had lived in Estonia since 1993, worked as a builder, and had four children here, one of them a minor, as well as a common-law partner. His failure to learn Estonian or seek citizenship over 30 years was attributed, according to his lawyer, to a lack of linguistic aptitude.

The court was unconvinced. It noted that Fyodorov holds Russian citizenship, maintains a Sberbank account, and owns three properties in Russia, two apartments in Moscow and a dacha near Chekhov, one of which is rented out, providing him with the means to live in the Russian Federation. The court concluded that, given the current security environment, state intervention was justified and proportionate. His appeal was dismissed in full.

Named in KAPO Annual Report

Fyodorov's case was included in KAPO's annual report for 2025 as an example of successfully countering hybrid threats. The case illustrates Estonia's increasingly firm stance on residents who, despite long-term ties to the country, are deemed to actively support or enable foreign state interests at odds with Estonian national security.