Russia may offer asylum over 'Russophobia,' threats to 'family values,' media reports

Russia's Interior Ministry drafted a bill on granting asylum to foreigners unable to uphold so-called "traditional family values" in their home countries, the Russian state-controlled RBC news agency reported on April 29, citing the document and an undisclosed source.

Under existing law, temporary asylum is granted to those eligible for refugee status or, "on humanitarian grounds," to individuals who cannot be deported from Russia.

The bill reportedly proposes expanding these grounds to include the inability to uphold "traditional family values and the primacy of family-based child-rearing" in one’s home country, values recognized by Russia, as well as "fears related to Russophobia."

Russia has intensified its crackdown on LGBTQ rights in recent years in the name of self-proclaimed "traditional values." Last summer, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing foreigners and stateless persons to apply for temporary residence in Russia on "moral grounds."

By emphasizing "traditional values," Moscow seems to cast itself as an ideological ally of U.S. President Donald Trump's supporters and other Western conservatives, presenting Russia as a protector of family and religion.

Russian propaganda also frequently invokes the term "Russophobia" to portray criticism of the Kremlin as unfair hatred toward the Russian people.

The new bill introduces four categories of protection: refugee status, temporary asylum, as well as political asylum and temporary protection, RBC reported. Applications for protection cannot be submitted from outside Russia, nor electronically, RBC reported.

The bill also does not provide for refugee housing from the government’s temporary settlement fund, although accommodation in Russia's Interior Ministry-run temporary housing centers will remain available.