an ideological visa to escape “destructive neoliberal orientations” and “satanic values”

This measure, which concerns foreigners who want to come and settle in Russia because they share its traditional values, has just come into force.

It had been talked about in Moscow for several months, the ukase was finally signed by Vladimir Putin in August and came into force on September 1. Russia now offers a residence visa for foreigners who share its traditional spiritual and moral values.

This visa, initially for three years, will be granted without a language test or a Russian culture test, as is the case when you want to come and settle in Russia: it will be enough to say that you oppose your country, which imposes “destructive neoliberal ideological orientations”. In plain language, in the Russian context, this means that you oppose same-sex marriage, anything that may resemble feminism, criticism of religion, etc. and that you consider yourself persecuted in your country and that you are therefore requesting political asylum in Russia.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is to publish the list of these countries “destroying traditional values”, but we already have an idea: it should concern American, Canadian, and European Union citizens (including the French). Vladimir Putin says that we are promoting “satanic values”. On the other hand, this ideological visa will not be available to the Chinese or Afghans, for example.

We don’t yet know what the precise arrangements will be for obtaining the document. There will probably be an interview, a commitment to sign. The fact remains that in the French community in Moscow, where people are often very pro-Kremlin today, they consider this to be excellent news, which will allow French people to leave the “hell” that France has become: this is what we can read on social networks. However, coming to settle in Russia in the current context, even with this new visa, remains very complicated. We don’t have official figures on the French, or Westerners more generally, who make this choice. What is certain is that it is not massive.