State Duma
Lower house of Russian parliament; delegation visited US Congress under sanctions.
Last refreshed: 1 April 2026
How did sanctioned Russian MPs get into the US Congress, and what did Moscow gain from it?
Latest on State Duma
- What is Russia's State Duma?
- The State Duma is the 450-seat lower house of the Russian Federal Assembly. It has functioned as a rubber-stamp legislature under Kremlin direction since 2022, authorising wartime laws without substantive debate.
- Did Russian MPs visit the US Congress in 2026?
- Yes. A sanctioned State Duma delegation led by Foreign Affairs chair Vyacheslav Nikonov visited the US Congress on 26 March 2026, invited by Rep Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) with State Department authorisation. All delegation members were under EU sanctions.Source: Congressional records / US media
- Who leads the State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee?
- Vyacheslav Nikonov chairs the State Duma's Foreign Affairs Committee. He led the delegation that visited the US Congress in March 2026.Source:
- How did sanctioned Russian lawmakers get into the United States?
- The State Department issued authorisation for the visit by the sanctioned Duma delegation in March 2026, enabling entry despite EU sanctions on all members. The visit was arranged at the invitation of Rep Anna Paulina Luna.Source: US State Department
- What laws has the State Duma passed during the Ukraine war?
- The Duma has passed mobilisation legislation, press censorship laws criminalising criticism of the military, property confiscation frameworks for war critics, and legal instruments for governing Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories.
Background
The State Duma is the lower house of the Russian Federal Assembly, comprising 450 deputies elected on a mixed proportional and constituency basis. In practice the chamber operates as a rubber-stamp legislature: since the start of full-scale operations in Ukraine, it has authorised all wartime legal measures without meaningful debate or opposition. Its most significant recent international exposure came when a Duma delegation led by Foreign Affairs Committee chair Vyacheslav Nikonov visited the US Congress on 26 March 2026, invited by Rep Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) with State Department authorisation — all delegation members were under EU sanctions at the time.
The Duma's Foreign Affairs Committee, under Nikonov, is the principal legislative instrument for signalling Kremlin diplomatic positions to foreign audiences. Duma delegations historically served an intelligence-gathering and track-two diplomatic function even during periods of formal hostility. The March 2026 Congress visit was the first such interaction since Russia's full-scale invasion, and was criticised by EU partners who noted the sanctions status of all participants.
Domestically, the Duma has enabled the war economy through successive wartime legislation: mobilisation laws, press censorship, property confiscation from those deemed to have 'discredited' the military, and legal frameworks for occupied territories. It functions as a legislative amplifier for Kremlin policy rather than an independent legislative body.