7,600 Russian Tourists Seek Extension of Stay in Phuket Amid Tourism Boom

[BigStar]

25 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

At the same time people are complaining that the Russians are taking over Thai businesses.

Could be paranoia by the locals and greatly exaggerated. Police couldn't prove a supposed foreign taxi driver was actually picking up customers, but fined him B1000 for no license. ????

 

But you're ignoring an elephant in the room. Tell us about all those developers and property owners complaining about selling their properties to Russians. How about the food & drink vendors, supermarkets, malls, 7/11 operators? WOT? No complaints about making all that money?

[IAMHERE]

36 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

The average Russian is not in a position to come and buy a condo.

My thinking says the average Russian is not in a position to get out of Russia. The ones that do are connected or have money.

[soi3eddie]

23 minutes ago, Jonathan Swift said:

I guess SOMEONE has to 'splain this to you - many are seeking to escape persecution and death because of the Ukraine war, or do you not read anything besides aseannow? I'm sure that is not what they tell immigration or news writers. I've heard it straight from the Russians themselves. So I'd say they're entitled to a symphony orchestra full of violins. 

Think you missed @transam's point completely. 

 

[onthedarkside]

An off topic post attempting to hyjack the thread by bringing NATO and  bio labs conspiracey into it has been removed

[JackGats]

The Russians I see in Jomtien do not look like draft dodgers. Most are couples, rather well-off, many with child. Isn't the West believing its own propaganda about Russian men fleeing conscription en masse? That would be great if it happened, but does it?

[Toby1947]

They ain't tourist, they are conscription dodgers who probably couldn't even point to Thailand on a map before the conflict. So stop patting yourself on the back Thailand for showing your usual cowardly fence sitting. One side will emerge with the upper hand before long and as usual your cowardly so called military government will be scrambling to show their support 

[cheapcanuck]

Russians just not wanting to get picked to fight in the war. That's the real reason they are applying to stay in Thailand longer.

[Burma Bill]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

7,600 Russian nationals have sought to extend their stay

I wonder why?

 

[Stefanix]

Those Russians are probably the wealthier ones, i. e. those who lived in conformance and silent support of the Russian regime. Now they avoid the consequences of their passive or even active support and let the others suffer. I would welcome only truly dissident Russians. But of course it is hard to differentiate. 

[John Drake]

2 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

Perhaps you're not aware that the citizens of a country are not responsible for the deeds of its leaders? Perhaps you are also not aware that many Russians are fleeing persecution, arrest, and imprisonment for opposing the Ukraine war? As well as fleeing because they don't want to be conscripted and sent to their certain death there? Perhaps you are not even aware there is a war in Ukraine? I just recently met and had a nice chat with a Russian couple whose answer to my first question, why did they come here, was answered with "because our country wants to kill us". So, just askin', where's YOUR humanity in all this? How many ethnic minorities are you afraid might take over your nice safe territory, in a country that was never yours in the first place? 

Hysteria, hyperbole, exaggeration.

[Phil1964]

4 hours ago, Skallywag said:

Sounds like they need to pay a Visa agent to sort it out or do a border run.  Isnt that what every other foreigner does?  What is the big deal? 

Russians - Those with the money to escape Putin's drafts, arrogantly believe they have a sense of entitlement and that other nationalities are beneath them. 

 

[nickmondo]

there should be NO RUSSIANS in Thailand at all

Thailand should ban them.......same as most countries have.

But of course, Thailand just want to make fast cash, and dont think it through

[Phil1964]

3 hours ago, Tropposurfer said:

On a laterally related subject we watched an HBO documentary the other evening called 'Navalny' which mirrored my old friend Katyas experiences as a freelance journalist. Kat had to flee St Petersburg some years back and cannot return to Russia for fear of being killed or arrested and disappeared like so many others.

The doco. painted a pretty dark picture of Russia. Complete dismantlement of any sense of free speech. Social media platforms banned and replaced by State run entities. No free press, assassinations, beatings of opposition, dissidents voiced folks by non-uniformed thugs in the pay of the State, FSB spies and informants throughout society. People snatched off the streets in broad daylight.

Those who aren't all in with Putin are controlled with terror. Deportations to gulags and other prisons for years with no formal convictions under bizarre fascist/quasi old-communist block laws of detention. All this wrapped in an endless cycle of misinformation, and brainwashing of the populace.

Yep. I know of a Russian woman who lives in UK, works remotely running the family's banking aspects of their lumber and forestry products empire. Company registered in UK as a 'shell' purely to transact international sales payments between lumber company and it's global clients, thus preventing Putin's mob doing what they used to do with impunity, ie: they would simply extract money from the company's accounts when previously held in Russian banks.

Their profits held in UK banking system are then used to buy vast swathes of rental properties in small towns in England, enabling their other business interests to expand away from Russia.

Likely the UK tax system and Ukraine war sanctions are also avoided by this 'operation' that she has quietly run for over a decade??

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Dave0206]

If they need a border run previous post spoke of a possible illegal Ukrainian van driver he could probably arrange free bungee jump for them also no strings attached 

[sabai-dee-man]

Draft dodgers... but the more here, the less there are in Ukraine. I don't personally like them; my overriding, albeit limited experiences with them have been largely negative, but they're relatively easy to avoid.

 

I try to remain positive and think that they are "conscientious objectors" rather than supporters of Russia's policies and just cowards! ????‍♂️

[pokerface1]

5 hours ago, MJCM said:

Shouldn't that read "escape the Conscription"?

Another example of fake news that conviently slipped under the radar of those responsible. 

[IvorBiggun2]

4 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

Perhaps you're not aware that the citizens of a country are not responsible for the deeds of its leaders?

But it's the citizens that elected them so therefore they ARE responsible.

[IvorBiggun2]

1 hour ago, sabai-dee-man said:

Draft dodgers... but the more here, the less there are in Ukraine.

Don't be silly. Russia has many more troops than you can imagine.

 

Quote

Russia's total military manpower was estimated at 1,330,900 as of 2023. Of them, 830.9 thousand personnel were active, 250 thousand were reserve service members, and 250 thousand were paramilitary forces

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334413/military-personnel-in-russia-by-type/#:~:text=Russia's total military manpower was,250 thousand were paramilitary forces.

[Funkymover]

"to escape the winter season",,, are you having a laugh,  its nothing to do with the winter season,,, these are just the cowards, who do not care about the thousands of Ukrainians getting murdered but are too cowardly to get mobilised,  They are selflish cowards, running to thailand,  and they know the greed of the thai government, will allow them to do it just for their money  

[ArturGorbachev]

found some pictures of the draft dodgers, can confirm traitors of the motherland

[crazykopite]

There all running away from conscription I wonder what Putin will do to them when they have to return to Russia will they be cast aside and regarded as cowards there are as many on Samui, Phangan and Koh Tao at least it makes up for the number of Chinese who have failed to come to Thailand so the current Government will be more than happy and now they can make more money by extending all those visa applications 

[3NUMBAS]

they cant use cards only wads of rubles  .and nothing worth buying in moscow

[3NUMBAS]

how easy to change bitcoins in phuket??/

[SiSePuede419]

There's good people and bad people in every country.

 

Saw a 20 something (probably) Russian woman riding a scooter in Krabi in a thong bikini with her ass exposed.

 

She was one of the good ones. ????

[JoseThailand]

2 hours ago, nickmondo said:

there should be NO RUSSIANS in Thailand at all

Thailand should ban them.......same as most countries have.

But of course, Thailand just want to make fast cash, and dont think it through

Thailand has wisely chosen a "balanced" stance in this conflict haha

[soi3eddie]

1 hour ago, ArturGorbachev said:

found some pictures of the draft dodgers, can confirm traitors of the motherland

Is that the Andaman Sea or the Baltic Sea?

 

[ArturGorbachev]

Just now, soi3eddie said:

Is that the Andaman Sea or the Baltic Sea?

 

phuket, photo from reuters as of december 2022

[soi3eddie]

1 hour ago, Funkymover said:

these are just the cowards, who do not care about the thousands of Ukrainians getting murdered but are too cowardly to get mobilised, 

So you would rather they were mobilised to fight against Ukraine? If it was a war to protect Russia from invasion then you would have a point. FYI, Russia invaded Ukraine and not vice versa. Many Russians are leaving to avoid being conscripted to fight in Ukraine. Get it, they probably don't want to fight the Ukranians. Better they are in Thailand than fighting against Ukraine wouldn't you agree?

 

[BigStar]

4 hours ago, Toby1947 said:

They ain't tourist, they are conscription dodgers who probably couldn't even point to Thailand on a map before the conflict.

Russians were prominent among tourist groups some years ago before the rouble collapsed. Many already have properties here. They know Thailand well. And I see mostly families and couples among them.

[ozimoron]

3 minutes ago, soi3eddie said:

So you would rather they were mobilised to fight against Ukraine? If it was a war to protect Russia from invasion then you would have a point. FYI, Russia invaded Ukraine and not vice versa. Many Russians are leaving to avoid being conscripted to fight in Ukraine. Get it, they probably don't want to fight the Ukranians. Better they are in Thailand than fighting against Ukraine wouldn't you agree?

 

No, desperate people do desperate things.