August 2024.
As part of the program Regional Initiative to Combat Disinformation “Western Balkans Anti-Disinformation Hub: Exposing Malign Influences through Watchdog Journalism”, we present you a new monthly analyses of fake news and disinformation narratives.
Zakharova: Citizens of NATO countries turn to Russia asking for residence
Competition and confrontation between Russia and Western countries – or the so-called “collective West” – a term that has taken root in both Russian and pro-Russian media around the world – does not only imply (geo)political and economic frameworks but also takes place in the field of social models, values, ideas and cultural patterns.
Narratives about the threat of traditional values in the West are often reproduced through the media close to official Moscow, with Russia presenting itself as the protector and guardian of conservative, Christian, family models and values. Given the juxtaposition of liberal frameworks of modern Western societies with allegedly traditional attitudes and social postulates that are threatened in the West, it finds fertile ground among conservative and anti-European-minded sections of the population in countries across Europe, including Serbia.
The propaganda portrayal of Western countries as a threat to traditional and family values is also the basis for other anti-Western narratives that are spread in the domestic media. In this key, the news published by the Belgrade-based Politika under the title: “Citizens of NATO countries turn to Russia asking for residence” is illustrative.
Politika reported the statement of Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, previously known for very controversial and debatable announcements. Zakharova pointed out that “citizens of NATO countries are turning to Russia and asking for residence permits or visas to save families from the policy of the collective West whose goal is to destroy traditional values.”
It is followed by her statement that “a large number of citizens of NATO countries come to our embassies… because they have children, from some countries of Western Europe they turn to thousands of people… some are afraid, some come to consult, some come with their families and says “we will not leave” (from the embassy).” Maria Zakharova claims that they are “not doing it for Russia and higher goals,” but that they are “wealthy people who want to save their children from changing sex.”
In the Politika news, it is reminded that from “August 19, citizens of other countries can turn to Russia if they are exposed to persecution in their own countries because they respect traditional values.” Namely, Russian President Vladimir Putin then signed a decree simplifying the procedure for submitting requests for resettlement to Russia through humanitarian support. Zakharova further emphasized that “Russia will assist those who do not accept the destructive neoliberal attitudes in their countries, which are contrary to traditional values.”
The claims of the spokeswoman of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, about the number of people from Western countries who will potentially request to move to Russia are complicated to fully verify at the given moment, but taking into account previous trends, it is doubtful that this statement has any basis in practice. Immigration to Russia from Western countries in previous years was very low and was mostly about the return of Russian citizens. On the other hand, it is important to state that only in the past two years, from 2022, more than 900,000 citizens left Russia, mostly moving to Western countries.
Author: Igor Mirosavljević
