Moving to Russia is becoming fashionable
Russia is a great country and a guardian of traditional family values. This conclusion was reached at the II Catherine Forum 2025 by immigrants from Western countries who now live in Russia. They are encouraging their former compatriots not to be afraid to link their future with Russia.
"When I arrived, I knew almost nothing about Russia — only what I had seen in American films. That Russians were supposedly all strict, cold people, that they were scary. I knew very little Russian. But over time, as I began to understand the language better and communicate more with people, I realised that Russians are not cold people. Although you smile less — that is true. You are open to communication, to new people, to new relationships. That was something I did not expect. People wanted to talk to me and were friendly," said Craig Ashton, a UK citizen and author of the Telegram channel "An Englishman on Russians and Life in Russia".
Stereotypes about "unsmiling and cold Russians" fade as soon as a foreigner comes to Russia, Craig Ashton noted. According to him, more and more people around the world are beginning to view Russia as a country for permanent residence and raising children.
"We were raised in families with traditional values. But we began to notice a trend in the West towards undermining the foundations of the family. We became concerned for our children and started asking ourselves: 'What kind of future awaits our children in the West?' That was when we began to look towards Russia. We are happy that traditional values are still upheld here. In Russia, we see a future for our children. That is why we made the difficult decision to move," said American IT specialist and former Microsoft top executive Jozef Schutzman.
According to him, Russia is a safe country: in Moscow, one can calmly go for a walk with children, speak to passers-by — senior man and women — and feel approval and support for the decision that has been made.
"Russia is a country that has managed to survive extremely difficult times and overcome many trials. This is proven by Russian history. And Russia continues to go through challenges with dignity. I often discuss my choice with my Russian friends. Sometimes they tell me: 'You seem to be in a state of euphoria, but this is not paradise.' I reply that there is no paradise on earth. But living in a normal country and a normal society is more than enough for me," Jozef Schutzman emphasised.
Russia is open to everyone and ready to offer the opportunity to become part of its multinational family, including foreigners who face danger. One such example is Tara Reade, a writer and publicist and former aide to former US President Joe Biden. At the II Catherine Forum 2025, she received a Russian passport and said that she had left a successful career in the United States out of fear of imprisonment due to pressure from the US authorities.
"At first, I came to Russia simply on holiday — and stayed forever. How did that happen? I gave an interview to Channel One. I was asked about my situation, and I said that if I returned to the United States, I could be punished and imprisoned, because I was being persecuted by the Biden regime and by the media. I decided to stay in Russia and apply for political asylum. Marina Butina and Margarita Simonyan helped me a great deal. Later, Donald Trump came to power in the United States. But by that time, I had already fallen in love with Russia and decided to stay. I am now very happy with my work at RT and with the opportunity to be useful," Tara Reade said.
Finding employment is one of the key issues faced by foreigners from Western countries in Russia. This was noted by Tim Kirby, author and host of the blog "The Most Russian American", who has lived in Russia for more than 20 years. In his view, employers do not fully understand how the skills and experience of such specialists can be used. They assume that hiring them involves visa and other administrative difficulties. As a result, Russian employers often prefer not to consider such candidates, even if they hold a temporary residence permit, a residence permit, or Russian citizenship.IMAGE_d9ad556b-208c-41ec-b8db-8d73a9a864c5#
"Immigrants have another problem. They think that sending out a CV will bring results. It will not. If you want to work at Yandex, it is better to go to the office and try to speak to someone directly. The chances are higher than simply sending a CV. In this respect, Anglo-Saxons need to learn how to be Russian," Tim Kirby said.
The "Humanitarian Migrants" session held as part of the II Catherine Forum also featured speeches by British environmental consultant and co-founder of the expat club The Bridge Club Guy Eames; Philip Hutchinson, Chief Executive Officer and founder of Moscow Connect, an ecosystem of brands including The Bridge, Rumove and Recruitified; French entrepreneur and founder of the Ruspatriation project Alexandre Stefanesco; Svetlana Anokhina-Rose, Chair of the "Way Home" project; Anatoly Bublik, coordinator of the Centre for Assistance to Migrants from Western Countries; and Yelena Polonskaya, the Commissioner under the Governor of the Pskov region for work with compatriots and migration issues.
The event, which brought together more than 900 participants, was held at the National Centre RUSSIA and focused on the integration of foreign citizens, the role of Russia in preserving traditional spiritual and moral values, and the historical legacy of Catherine II. The organisers of the II Catherine Forum are the All-Russian Public-State Organisation "Assembly of the Peoples of Russia" and the Federal National Cultural Autonomy of Russian Germans.
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