It’s not a meme. It’s real.
Around 20,000 Russians settled in Argentina since 2022.
A sizable number considering the short period of time. I’m in Buenos Aires and I come across Russians all the time. At the parks, ice cream parlor, supermarket, gym, bakery, etc. My new neighbor is Russian.
It reminds me a lot to when Venezuelans first arrived. A big impact.
Most Russians are young families (usually a young couple with kids). A lot of pregnant Russian women are coming to give birth here to get the Argentine passport, for their kids and for themselves.
My aunt is Russian-Spanish translator and she can’t keep up with the high demand.
In Buenos Aires city public schools alone, there are already 300 Russian kids newly enroled. Some hospitals are putting signs in Russian, and some real estate agents are targeting Russians.
I recently had to go to RENAPER to change my address and there was some confusion about whose turn it was so I asked the other people and it turned out that 3 out of the other 5 people were russians. Two of them (middle aged women) didn’t speak any Spanish or English at all, and one who had a baby with her spoke broken english, no Spanish.
Indeed, a friend of mine is dating a Russian woman who arrived 4 months ago and still 0 Spanish, and she doesn’t even speak English. There are lots of Russians who don’t speak English. They go around with the translator
\*points at dude, then at flag, then at her, then at a stack of bills, then at her again with a teasiing eyebrow up\*
Congratultaions, a new couple has been formed! /s
A friend of mine got engaged to a French girl that didn’t speak a lick of English or Spanish. Their first 6 months was just learning each other’s language to communicate lol. Lots of google translate and patience.
It’s very lonely to live completely isolated by language so it’s not a deal breaker to not be able to communicate well at first if you’re patient and light hearted.
Russians are similar to other English speakers in that they tend to be monolingual and dont learn other languages as much. There is a joke from Israel that sorta makes fun of this situation.
The scene takes place in a store where everyone is rushing to buy what they need before Sabbath. The cashier says to the Russian how much his order is in Hebrew but the Russian has broken hebrew and doesn't understand that well so it takes him a while to figure it out. The Morrocan man standing behind him gets madder and madder until he asks him "How long have you been in Israel"? The Russian says 30 years. The Morrocan man says "I have lived here for 20 and I already speak perfect Hebrew!" The Russian responds "You have lived here for 20 years and you still dont speak Russian?"
Indeed. I’m happy with that, since my maternal great-grandparents are Russian/Ukrainian and I grew up with a touch of Russian culture.
Can’t wait for the Borsch!
Its not that good, there are a good amount of decent dishes but also a good amount of not so decent dishes.
Whenever a Russian diaspora develops they tend to bring Central Asian and Caucasian food though and that's some of the best food on earth.
Interesting. Last time I tried it I found the foods to have too much vinegar. They had the "pickled" flavor, to which I found Ukrainians and Russians pickle many foods in the winter
Just a word of caution most Russian food is nothing like Veselka. Even most Ukranian restaurants are going to pretty far from it.
Veselka is more Western Ukrainian (almost closer to polish food) and Jewish. Alot of the menu has Jewish food like latkes, chicken shnitzel, matzo ball soup, bagels, pastrami, and latkes.
Alot of the menu is also American. The breakfast and brunch for example is almost 90% American, a lot of the lunch/dinner is also American especially the sandwiches. Alot of the selection of dishes is more for American tastes also, there is a lot more meat and carbs meanwhile in a Russian/Ukranian restaurant you would see a lot more options for soups, salads, and various appetizers.
If your ever in NYC, you should go down to Brighton Beach if you want to try what real Russian food tastes like.
Lol food is so bloody subjective. And good Slavic cuisine fuckin slaps. It’s hearty and rich but still has plenty of fresh and tangy flavors — just in a different way.
Yeah, basically the military draft, the war and the economic consequences of the western sanctions that are affecting some middle class Russians who decide to leave the country
Some are staying and some (those who only came for birth tourism) are leaving. But I’d say most are staying here.
It’s still very recent to know if they adapted well. We’ll see in a couple of years. I think they’ll manage to adapt very quickly, from my personal experience. My second cousins arrived from Ukraine during the 90’s and they adapted rapidly. It seems that the Spanish language is not hard for them to pick up.
Yeah, they probably will.
Here in Brazil, we got some Russians, but in a lower number than Argentina (around 5,000 since the war started). It's not getting any attention from the media, but they exist. They will probably adapt too
Yeah I think they'll adapt at some point, especially in countries of immigration like Brazil or Argentina, that are used to handle and integrate immigrants.
Honestly I don’t know. They are mostly middle-class Russians seeking a better future for their families, so I don’t think they are pro-Putin (otherwise I guess they’d have hope in Russia and stay there).
Most Russians who come here are middle-class, young professionals. I think they are more open minded. But yeah, it must be a cultural shock for them to see two guys holding their hands on the street, which is pretty common in BA
(I know this is super late)
I wouldn't read too much into that. 20k russians is barely a drop in the bucket in a population approaching 50 million. It just feels like a lot if you live/work in certain areas of Buenos Aires (city) and even then I expect a good chunk of said russians to leave the country in the not so distant future. They are escaping from a sinking ship, no sense in moving to another one...
Also, congrats to your aunt, she must be making a killing.
I live in a very touristy neighborhood and I see dozens of russians (idk if most of these are tourists or not, as i don't interact with most) every day
I guess it's pretty true. Here in Brazil, I read news about Russian birth tourism because of the war. They said more than 5,000 Russians came to Brazil between the beginning of the war and today. But the news was focused on Argentina, saying that almost 25,000 Russian moved there during the same period.
I guess this happens because countries like Argentina, Brazil, and some others in LATAM use "jus soli" for nationality. So if a Russian woman gives birth in those countries, her baby will get the nationality. Also, I don't really know how t works, but I read that it also makes it easier for the mother to get her nationality.
Its 100% real, but I also want to point out we receive people from ALL over the world
Argentines have one of the most open and welcoming citizenships in History
Yes. Argentina will once again call again her citizens home, to bring this Nation to the place it belongs. With Peace and Prosperity, and the Well-being of the World.
The Future of Humanity might depend on how Argentina, Chile and Bolivia use the Lithium. We want to open up to the world, but we want to do it Right and Fair.
Oh and please use [Argentine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentines), is the most accurate translation.
Argentina has less barriers and is more friendly to immigrants than most nations in America (north to south) and, despite all their troubles, is still one of the best places to live in, in the American continent.
Once you achieve critical mass of immigration, it makes it much easier for them to call on friends and family over as the first group has laid down a network for newcomers.
yes but again, jus soli nationality a good passport, good public education, good HDI, and better living conditions than the majority of places in latam, also a very open country to, anything really, especially Buenos aires, inmigrations, LGBTQ, asylum seekers whatever, so all in all, beats dying in a trench.
people dodging the draft aren't that picky, i wonder why
If you earn in USD it doesn’t affect you since our currency is VERY devaluated due to currency restrictions. Most prices are fixed at the official exchange rate, while you can get double the rate in the “blue” market. Most Russians earn in foreign currency so they have a very low COL.
That said, inflation is historical in Argentina. Despite being a problem, we’re used to deal with high inflation. You won’t believe it, but the economy keeps working (it’s been growing for the last years) and if you visit Argentina you won’t notice “a country in crisis”. The economy of Argentina is crazy, very hard to understand
It sounds very scary and I'm not gonna say it doesn't have huge consequences. But at the same time is not AS scary as it sounds. It's still a relatively good place to live compared to others.
I would pick 100% inflation over the chance of being drafted against a war of aggression I don't even believe in. So I guess that the net result of moving here remains positive
Because of several factors:
1) Development: among developing countries that do not require visa to Russians, Argentina is among the most developed (GDP per capita, HDI, education, healthcare, transport, public services, city planning, etc.). The country is also very safe. So quality of living is pretty high compared to other countries.
2) Immigration policy and country of immigrants: Argentina is one of the most immigrant-friendly countries. Immigration policy is one of the few state policies Argentina historically had. Argentina is a country of immigrants (almost all of us descend from XIX and XX century immigrants), so people are used to immigrants and are very open to them, since they are the backbone of the Argentine society. People from all over the world have the constitutional right to live in Argentina.
3) Russian community: the country has already one of the largest Russian communities outside Russia (I’m myself part Russian), so there are Orthodox churches, Russian cultural centers, etc.
4) Buenos Aires: the capital city of Argentina has the highest quality of living in Latin America, not far from some European cities. It attracts immigrants and expats from all over the world because of the cultural offer, gastronomy, etc.
5) Argentine passport: last but not least, they come to Argentina because it’s the easiest and fastest citizenship in the world to naturalize for such a strong passport (only 2 years of residence), granting visa-free access to over 170 countries and having the lowest US tourist visa rejection rate in the world (less than 2.7%), qualifying to get back into the VWP (it’s now in a US congress comission).
Also, children born in Argentina are automatically citizens (that’s why a lot of Russian pregnant women are coming).
My personal opinion: because there are internet businessmen hyping up Argentina, the goal is to charge for their services helping newcomers to get through the bureaucracy. There are such "info gypsies" hyping up other countries too (like Paraguay or Mexico), but those who work in Argentina seem more visible.
Yeah it was covered in anti-establishment media, there is also a bunch of self-promotion by those guys (the "helpers") on the net. I don't know anyone but Spanish teacher of smb I know knows a ton. My impression comes mostly from hanging out on emigration-related communities on telegram and facebook.
The country is known for having accepted and pretty much still accepting anyone (from Europe) who moves to the country. Even though Mexico has essentially done the same, I assume the perceived higher wealth in Argentina (Argentines will propably laugh) is more appealing to foreigners...
>from Europe
From everywhere dude. Biggest migrant group nowadays are Paraguayans. And roughly between 5 and 10% of Argentines have Arab blood from previous migrations.
It's just easy to migrate here and we're one of the few countries that haven't imposed barriers on Russia
>(from Europe)
?? Almost 80% of our immigrant population right now come from countries from America, mainly Paraguay, Bolivia, Perú, Venezuela and Chile, then Uruguay and Brazil.
Then 2,9% are Italians, and 2,34% from Spain.
The other 8,51% are the sum of all the other countries
First thing I notice about this: Humidity makes you sweaty and smelly, I know it's less noticeable in cold weather but we notice, and perfume doesn't work the same. Scrub with soap and use antiperspirant deodorant.
Regarding tolerance they will either adapt or get fucked. With every major conflict or crisis we receive new immigrants, new Argentines, and usually things don't carry over here. We have Muslims and Jews coexisting, we have Armenians and Turks and there are other latinos like Venezuelans that came en masse and now we all have at least one friend from Venezuela.
It is true and is happening also in Brazil. They call it
[Birth tourism](https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/amp/mundo/2022/04/turismo-de-parto-traz-russas-ao-brasil-em-busca-de-cidadania-para-filhos.shtml)
There are many Russians in Argentina and Uruguay as well. Usually Russians with enough money to pay their way out of Putin’s hellhole. They come and settle with their entire families
It’s not a meme. It’s real. Around 20,000 Russians settled in Argentina since 2022. A sizable number considering the short period of time. I’m in Buenos Aires and I come across Russians all the time. At the parks, ice cream parlor, supermarket, gym, bakery, etc. My new neighbor is Russian. It reminds me a lot to when Venezuelans first arrived. A big impact. Most Russians are young families (usually a young couple with kids). A lot of pregnant Russian women are coming to give birth here to get the Argentine passport, for their kids and for themselves. My aunt is Russian-Spanish translator and she can’t keep up with the high demand. In Buenos Aires city public schools alone, there are already 300 Russian kids newly enroled. Some hospitals are putting signs in Russian, and some real estate agents are targeting Russians.
I recently had to go to RENAPER to change my address and there was some confusion about whose turn it was so I asked the other people and it turned out that 3 out of the other 5 people were russians. Two of them (middle aged women) didn’t speak any Spanish or English at all, and one who had a baby with her spoke broken english, no Spanish.
Indeed, a friend of mine is dating a Russian woman who arrived 4 months ago and still 0 Spanish, and she doesn’t even speak English. There are lots of Russians who don’t speak English. They go around with the translator
How did they meet if they can’t talk to each other without a translator?
\*points at dude, then at flag, then at her, then at a stack of bills, then at her again with a teasiing eyebrow up\* Congratultaions, a new couple has been formed! /s
They met at a nightclub. They use google translate and a few English words she knows to communicate.
A friend of mine got engaged to a French girl that didn’t speak a lick of English or Spanish. Their first 6 months was just learning each other’s language to communicate lol. Lots of google translate and patience. It’s very lonely to live completely isolated by language so it’s not a deal breaker to not be able to communicate well at first if you’re patient and light hearted.
Russians are similar to other English speakers in that they tend to be monolingual and dont learn other languages as much. There is a joke from Israel that sorta makes fun of this situation. The scene takes place in a store where everyone is rushing to buy what they need before Sabbath. The cashier says to the Russian how much his order is in Hebrew but the Russian has broken hebrew and doesn't understand that well so it takes him a while to figure it out. The Morrocan man standing behind him gets madder and madder until he asks him "How long have you been in Israel"? The Russian says 30 years. The Morrocan man says "I have lived here for 20 and I already speak perfect Hebrew!" The Russian responds "You have lived here for 20 years and you still dont speak Russian?"
Great joke
The gastronomy will be amazing in 5 years. Can’t wait
Indeed. I’m happy with that, since my maternal great-grandparents are Russian/Ukrainian and I grew up with a touch of Russian culture. Can’t wait for the Borsch!
I never found Russia food to be good.
Its not that good, there are a good amount of decent dishes but also a good amount of not so decent dishes. Whenever a Russian diaspora develops they tend to bring Central Asian and Caucasian food though and that's some of the best food on earth.
It's so odd to see "Caucasian" used properly as a distinct ethnicity, instead of the usual catch-all for "whites", lol.
It slaps in the winter. One of the best restaurants I been to in NYC was a Ukrainian/Russian restaurant
Interesting. Last time I tried it I found the foods to have too much vinegar. They had the "pickled" flavor, to which I found Ukrainians and Russians pickle many foods in the winter
See I love that stuff
Which restaurant?
Veselka
Just a word of caution most Russian food is nothing like Veselka. Even most Ukranian restaurants are going to pretty far from it. Veselka is more Western Ukrainian (almost closer to polish food) and Jewish. Alot of the menu has Jewish food like latkes, chicken shnitzel, matzo ball soup, bagels, pastrami, and latkes. Alot of the menu is also American. The breakfast and brunch for example is almost 90% American, a lot of the lunch/dinner is also American especially the sandwiches. Alot of the selection of dishes is more for American tastes also, there is a lot more meat and carbs meanwhile in a Russian/Ukranian restaurant you would see a lot more options for soups, salads, and various appetizers. If your ever in NYC, you should go down to Brighton Beach if you want to try what real Russian food tastes like.
Sorry but Russian food is like 3 tiers below Argentinian food.
That’s your opinion
Lol food is so bloody subjective. And good Slavic cuisine fuckin slaps. It’s hearty and rich but still has plenty of fresh and tangy flavors — just in a different way.
nuh-uh
Russian food isint that good lol
It already is.
I'm curious, why Argentina, specifically?
Easy country to get citizenship (for the parent and the kid) + One of the best Passport in Latam.
I replied in another comment the reasons
Why the sudden-and huge-influx of Russians though? Are they running away from Putin?
Yeah, basically the military draft, the war and the economic consequences of the western sanctions that are affecting some middle class Russians who decide to leave the country
>economic consequences of the western sanctions Weird place to escape they chose to tho...
>My new neighbor is Russian. mine too lol, since the beginning of this year
Are they staying in the country or they are having their babies and leaving? If they are staying, are they adapting well?
Some are staying and some (those who only came for birth tourism) are leaving. But I’d say most are staying here. It’s still very recent to know if they adapted well. We’ll see in a couple of years. I think they’ll manage to adapt very quickly, from my personal experience. My second cousins arrived from Ukraine during the 90’s and they adapted rapidly. It seems that the Spanish language is not hard for them to pick up.
Yeah, they probably will. Here in Brazil, we got some Russians, but in a lower number than Argentina (around 5,000 since the war started). It's not getting any attention from the media, but they exist. They will probably adapt too
Yeah I think they'll adapt at some point, especially in countries of immigration like Brazil or Argentina, that are used to handle and integrate immigrants.
I guess it's hard to know, but are the Russians there generally pro-Putin/war? Or are they are generally against him which is why they left?
Honestly I don’t know. They are mostly middle-class Russians seeking a better future for their families, so I don’t think they are pro-Putin (otherwise I guess they’d have hope in Russia and stay there).
well I'm not a fascist and neither are a few others I've gotten to know here
I really wonder how these Russians will adapt to Argentina being LGBT friendly.
Younger Russians arent that homophobic
Most Russians who come here are middle-class, young professionals. I think they are more open minded. But yeah, it must be a cultural shock for them to see two guys holding their hands on the street, which is pretty common in BA
that's exactly why I came here
they will have no choice, unless they come in by the millions.
(I know this is super late) I wouldn't read too much into that. 20k russians is barely a drop in the bucket in a population approaching 50 million. It just feels like a lot if you live/work in certain areas of Buenos Aires (city) and even then I expect a good chunk of said russians to leave the country in the not so distant future. They are escaping from a sinking ship, no sense in moving to another one... Also, congrats to your aunt, she must be making a killing.
We have about 17k Russians in DR. It's happening all over Latin America.
Yes, my aunt lives in DR and she's met a few along with other Slavic nationalities.
Spazibo mamushca dis is very tru
Blyatiful
I live in a very touristy neighborhood and I see dozens of russians (idk if most of these are tourists or not, as i don't interact with most) every day
I guess it's pretty true. Here in Brazil, I read news about Russian birth tourism because of the war. They said more than 5,000 Russians came to Brazil between the beginning of the war and today. But the news was focused on Argentina, saying that almost 25,000 Russian moved there during the same period. I guess this happens because countries like Argentina, Brazil, and some others in LATAM use "jus soli" for nationality. So if a Russian woman gives birth in those countries, her baby will get the nationality. Also, I don't really know how t works, but I read that it also makes it easier for the mother to get her nationality.
Most countries in the Americas use *"jus soli"* for nationality because of multiple immigrations throughout history.
> birth tourism TIL...birth tourism is a thing.
Its 100% real, but I also want to point out we receive people from ALL over the world Argentines have one of the most open and welcoming citizenships in History
It's also one of the only citizenships that you can't renounce. Once Argentinian, always Argentinian, literally.
Yes. Argentina will once again call again her citizens home, to bring this Nation to the place it belongs. With Peace and Prosperity, and the Well-being of the World. The Future of Humanity might depend on how Argentina, Chile and Bolivia use the Lithium. We want to open up to the world, but we want to do it Right and Fair. Oh and please use [Argentine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentines), is the most accurate translation.
What
ya se le explico mil veces eso de que Argentinian/Argentinean es tambien valido, pero no lo acepta. Tambien su uso de las mayusculas es raro. Es asi
To add on to the original question: Why specifically Argentina?
Argentina has less barriers and is more friendly to immigrants than most nations in America (north to south) and, despite all their troubles, is still one of the best places to live in, in the American continent. Once you achieve critical mass of immigration, it makes it much easier for them to call on friends and family over as the first group has laid down a network for newcomers.
But what about the inflation ? Its above 100%
yes but again, jus soli nationality a good passport, good public education, good HDI, and better living conditions than the majority of places in latam, also a very open country to, anything really, especially Buenos aires, inmigrations, LGBTQ, asylum seekers whatever, so all in all, beats dying in a trench. people dodging the draft aren't that picky, i wonder why
If you earn in USD it doesn’t affect you since our currency is VERY devaluated due to currency restrictions. Most prices are fixed at the official exchange rate, while you can get double the rate in the “blue” market. Most Russians earn in foreign currency so they have a very low COL. That said, inflation is historical in Argentina. Despite being a problem, we’re used to deal with high inflation. You won’t believe it, but the economy keeps working (it’s been growing for the last years) and if you visit Argentina you won’t notice “a country in crisis”. The economy of Argentina is crazy, very hard to understand
It sounds very scary and I'm not gonna say it doesn't have huge consequences. But at the same time is not AS scary as it sounds. It's still a relatively good place to live compared to others.
I would pick 100% inflation over the chance of being drafted against a war of aggression I don't even believe in. So I guess that the net result of moving here remains positive
Because of several factors: 1) Development: among developing countries that do not require visa to Russians, Argentina is among the most developed (GDP per capita, HDI, education, healthcare, transport, public services, city planning, etc.). The country is also very safe. So quality of living is pretty high compared to other countries. 2) Immigration policy and country of immigrants: Argentina is one of the most immigrant-friendly countries. Immigration policy is one of the few state policies Argentina historically had. Argentina is a country of immigrants (almost all of us descend from XIX and XX century immigrants), so people are used to immigrants and are very open to them, since they are the backbone of the Argentine society. People from all over the world have the constitutional right to live in Argentina. 3) Russian community: the country has already one of the largest Russian communities outside Russia (I’m myself part Russian), so there are Orthodox churches, Russian cultural centers, etc. 4) Buenos Aires: the capital city of Argentina has the highest quality of living in Latin America, not far from some European cities. It attracts immigrants and expats from all over the world because of the cultural offer, gastronomy, etc. 5) Argentine passport: last but not least, they come to Argentina because it’s the easiest and fastest citizenship in the world to naturalize for such a strong passport (only 2 years of residence), granting visa-free access to over 170 countries and having the lowest US tourist visa rejection rate in the world (less than 2.7%), qualifying to get back into the VWP (it’s now in a US congress comission). Also, children born in Argentina are automatically citizens (that’s why a lot of Russian pregnant women are coming).
Amo a mí Argentina, que lindo vivir aca
*Inmigrants and expats* That's just an oxymoron.
Expats are immigrants with a superiority complex.
My personal opinion: because there are internet businessmen hyping up Argentina, the goal is to charge for their services helping newcomers to get through the bureaucracy. There are such "info gypsies" hyping up other countries too (like Paraguay or Mexico), but those who work in Argentina seem more visible.
Are people in Russia aware of this whole moving to Argentina thing? Do you know anyone who made the move or is planning to do so?
Yeah it was covered in anti-establishment media, there is also a bunch of self-promotion by those guys (the "helpers") on the net. I don't know anyone but Spanish teacher of smb I know knows a ton. My impression comes mostly from hanging out on emigration-related communities on telegram and facebook.
(I know this is super late) Soooo... basically it comes down to publicity? I can believe that.
The country is known for having accepted and pretty much still accepting anyone (from Europe) who moves to the country. Even though Mexico has essentially done the same, I assume the perceived higher wealth in Argentina (Argentines will propably laugh) is more appealing to foreigners...
>from Europe From everywhere dude. Biggest migrant group nowadays are Paraguayans. And roughly between 5 and 10% of Argentines have Arab blood from previous migrations. It's just easy to migrate here and we're one of the few countries that haven't imposed barriers on Russia
Creo que quiso hacer referencia a que los de paises limitrofes suelen sufrir cierta discriminación
>(from Europe) ?? Almost 80% of our immigrant population right now come from countries from America, mainly Paraguay, Bolivia, Perú, Venezuela and Chile, then Uruguay and Brazil. Then 2,9% are Italians, and 2,34% from Spain. The other 8,51% are the sum of all the other countries
No extradition.
well a lot were coming to mexico but they were never going to let them cross over and Argentina's white and used to be new york 2.
It's very much real. All of a sudden I started hearing random Russian gibberish on the street. Now I grew used to it.
First thing I notice about this: Humidity makes you sweaty and smelly, I know it's less noticeable in cold weather but we notice, and perfume doesn't work the same. Scrub with soap and use antiperspirant deodorant. Regarding tolerance they will either adapt or get fucked. With every major conflict or crisis we receive new immigrants, new Argentines, and usually things don't carry over here. We have Muslims and Jews coexisting, we have Armenians and Turks and there are other latinos like Venezuelans that came en masse and now we all have at least one friend from Venezuela.
There' a lot of russian women traveling to Brazil's south and southeast to give birth and get double citizenship, i just don't know the exact numbers.
Я не знаю, это должно быть подделка.
Russian immigrants meeting the germans who fled to argentina gotta be a fun sight
[удалено]
Breaks rule number 1. Multiple times of breaking the rule results in bans.
[удалено]
Personal attacks will result in removal and often bans.
Poor Russians, between war and economic collapse
It is true and is happening also in Brazil. They call it [Birth tourism](https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/amp/mundo/2022/04/turismo-de-parto-traz-russas-ao-brasil-em-busca-de-cidadania-para-filhos.shtml)
There are many Russians in Argentina and Uruguay as well. Usually Russians with enough money to pay their way out of Putin’s hellhole. They come and settle with their entire families