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Following on a proposal by president-elect Vladimir Putin, the Russian Orthodox church announced plans to teach Russian language and culture to labor migrants from former Soviet countries.
A test language and culture course will open in Moscow, with more to follow nationwide if the idea works out, the press service for the capital’s eparchial council said on Wednesday.
The program is supported by the Federal Migration Service, the press service said. It did not specify when the course will begin.
Putin, who won the presidential elections on Sunday, said in a campaign article last month that labor migrants should be required to take tests in Russian language and culture to qualify to work in the country.
About 1.2 million foreigners legally traveled to Russia to work here in 2011, and a further 3.5 million could be illegal migrants, according to data from the Federal Migration Service. Many of them come from former Soviet republics in Central Asia, as well as Ukraine.
