US officials fear Putin will start arresting Americans in Russia in retaliation for sanctions  

The Biden administration has quietly warned American companies with large business interests in Russia that their employees there may be taken hostage in retaliation for sanctions. 

With the ruble plunging and US and European banks banning all business with Russia while it continues its assault on Ukraine, many American businesses are pulling their money out of the country. 

Now, Biden administration officials are also warning those companies that unless they extract staff, they may be arrested or taken hostage, according to unnamed sources cited by NBC on Tuesday. 

There are also growing concerns over the fact that both the EU and Russia have now closed their airspace to each other, making it harder for anyone who wants to leave Russia to get out of the country. 

Police on patrol in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, 01 March 2022. The world is turning its back on Russia while it continues its assault on Ukraine, putting any Americans who may still be there in an increasingly dangerous position 

President Biden has imposed strict economic sanctions on Russia. He has not yet shuttered commercial flights to and from Russia and the US but it is a possibility 

It’s unclear how many US citizens are currently living in Russia. At the start of the conflict with Russia, there were 23,000 Americans in Ukraine. 

On Sunday, the US Embassy in Russia issued an alert warning all Americans in the country to leave while they could. 

‘An increasing number of airlines are cancelling flights into and out of Russia, and numerous countries have closed their airspace to Russian airlines. 

‘U.S. citizens should consider departing Russia immediately via commercial options still available,’ it said. 

Evelyn Farka, the most senior official for Russia in the Pentagon during the Obama administration, told NBC it is a ‘plausible concern’ that Americans may be taken hostage or arrested in Moscow or other Russian cities. 

There is also the concern that American citizens may be arrested on bogus espionage charges and held in the country in prison, like Trevor Reed and Paul Whelan who are both in Russian prisons. 

The State Department has not confirmed how many Americans are currently living in Russia. 

The number of ways to get out of Russia is shrinking. EU countries have now ceased commercial flights to and from Russian cities 

Russia’s assault on Ukraine continued on Tuesday with brutal strikes on heavily populated civilian areas like Kharkiv, where the City Hall building was obliterated 

Dozens of Americans are fleeing Ukraine on trains, buses and in cars after choosing not to heed warnings from the government about leaving earlier this month. 

Biden warned on February 10 that the State Department would not be able to collect people to evacuate them as they did in Afghanistan. 

Many did not listen and stayed behind, now find themselves stuck in the conflict zone. 

Dozens of European airlines have now canceled all their flights to and from Russia. 

President Biden is yet to make that commitment. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that it was a possibility but would affect travel to Asia too. 

‘There are a lot of flights that U.S. airlines fly over Russia to go to Asia and other parts of the world and we factor in a range of factors,’ she said. 

The US has ruled out imposing a no-fly zone on Russian aircraft over Ukraine after a request from Zelensky. 

Psaki said it would mean US military planes actively shooting down Russian aircraft and engaging in warfare.