Rich Russians are increasingly hiring Chinese nannies. They have taken second place after English-speaking ones in the families of the Russian elite, according to the data of the "New York Times". The publication refers to Valentin Gogol, founder of the company "English Nanny", which provides nannies.
In an interview with the newspaper, Gogol said that he is trying his best to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for Chinese nannies, and their salaries reach $ 5,000 a month. According to Gogol, the clients of "English Nanny" already consider Chinese as a second foreign language, complementing English.
The Sinicization of Russia
This is just one aspect of the ongoing Sinicization of Russia, the American publication emphasizes. It also focuses on the significantly increased demand for learning Mandarin among Russian students and pupils, their interest in studying in China, as well as the growth in the popularity of Chinese culture and products - especially cars. Last year alone, over 900,000 Chinese cars were sold in Russia (according to official data), for comparison, in 2021 they were about 115,000.
19-year-old Alena Ievskaya told the newspaper that she chose to study the language at Moscow State University, where she is a first-year student, because she believes that China is on the rise and her prospects will be better if she speaks the language. Many Moscow universities already offer similar courses, the publication adds.
"In the country that until recently worshipped everything Western, something amazing has happened - China has become desirable and fashionable for Russians", the "New York Times" noted.
How Russians discovered China
The sharp growth in interest in China has been observed in the past three years against the backdrop of Russia's war against Ukraine and its political rapprochement with Beijing, the publication also notes.
"The past three years have allowed Russians to see the East in a completely new light - not as an exotic alternative to Europe, but as a major direction for business, tourism and research," says Kirill Babayev, head of the Institute of China and Contemporary Asia at the Russian Academy of Sciences. "The Russian people are following this trend with such great interest, as if they had just discovered another planet," he added.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, China has become the Kremlin's best friend in the public sphere, although some Russian officials remain deeply suspicious of Beijing's intentions. It has provided diplomatic support and bought Russian oil and gas. China has also helped replace Western consumer goods that Russians cannot buy because of sanctions.
From Putin's granddaughter to Xi's recipes
Russian President Vladimir Putin recently mentioned that his granddaughter knows Chinese. "When I was talking about some of my relatives learning Chinese, I was also referring to my granddaughter, who has a tutor from Beijing, with whom she speaks Chinese fluently", quoted Putin by "The Moscow Times".
And the American publication supplements the picture with the information that the Moscow metro has launched a red train with Chinese motifs and has translated its map into Chinese. On billboards and state television in the city, you can see Xi Jinping's "favorite phrases" (such as "Delicious soup is prepared by combining different ingredients"), and Chinese restaurants are now all over Russia.
Author: Olga Demidova