the ethnification of russian nationalismthe respondents believed that Islam represents a threat to social
stability and Russian culture, while more than half declared that
Chechens, Chinese and Roma represent cultural values incompat-
ible with the Russian way of life. A similar assessment was given
to Kyrgyz (43.8 per cent), Tajiks 46.8 (per cent) and Azerbaijanis
(44.3 per cent). These groups are heavily represented among the
labour immigrants who since the early 2000s have been coming
in increasing numbers to Russian cities (see Kosmarskaya and
Savin, this volume). Further, 48.7 per cent believed that many
migrants come not to do honest work, but to steal from Russians
and to weaken the Russian people. Close to half opined that
all migrants – not only those without proper work permits –
should be deported back to their home countries, along with their
children.
The great migration treks from Central Asia to Russian cities
are a relatively new phenomenon, gaining momentum only after
the differences in living standards between Russia and the south-
ern tier of former Soviet republics began to widen drastically in
the first decade of the 2000s. Exactly how many illegal workers
there are in Russia is anybody’s guess, with estimates varying from
a few million to ten million or more. Actual figures, however, are
less important for the new nationalism discourse in Russia than
the perception, fed by Russian media, that the country is being
inundated by people who are not only culturally alien but danger-
ous. Eurasianists and other state- focused nationalists have few
solutions to offer. They want to integrate the former Soviet repub-
lics as much as possible with Russia, and would like to keep the
borders open. The ethnonationalists, on the other hand, can capi-
talise on the new migrantophobia. Tellingly, in the early 2000s
the most influential nationalist organisation was the Movement
against Illegal Immigration. The new migration issue is clearly
one important factor that can explain why the ethnification of
Russian nationalism picked up speed after the turn of the millen-
nium and not earlier.