The Biden administration attempted to facilitate the entry of Russian scientists into the United States. However, the process has actually become more difficult for them.
Russia launched its attack on Ukraine in February 2022. In response, around nine thousand Russian scientists denounced the invasion in an open letter, prompting a harsh reaction from Vladimir Putin's government. Consequently, arrests and torture ensued, primarily targeting physicists. Many were detained on charges of sedition.
The United States then took steps to support Russian scientists. The White House launched a special campaign to facilitate their entry into the country, but the effort met with limited success.
A Russian scientist, speaking anonymously to Deutsche Welle, revealed that he had contacted professors at several top U.S. universities. They indicated that the U.S. government's initiative had failed due to opposition from Republicans in Congress.hysicist Mikhail Feigelman from the Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics in Chernogolovka, near Moscow, moved to Poland in spring 2022. He applied for a U.S. visa at the consulate in Warsaw, including an invitation letter from his daughter, who has lived in the United States for a long time.
Authorities requested some of Mikhail's publications after reviewing his application. In the past, presenting his publications sufficed to secure a visa. However, after seven months, his application was rejected. Mikhail explained, "I was told that I could not prove I would return on time if I went to the USA."
There have been numerous instances where applications have been turned down, yet discussions around them remain indirect, leaving the actual count shrouded in mystery.
Adding to the intrigue, an anonymous source shared a startling revelation. Despite receiving an invitation from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), a young married scientist applied for a spousal visa in the summer of 2022, only to find after two years of waiting that while the wife secured the visa, the husband did not.
Following the upheaval caused by the Ukraine crisis, a cascade of sanctions targeted Russia, extending to impact over 200 universities in the country. Consequently, the rejection rate for visa applications soared.
As reported by the Russian travel website Forum Vinsokogo, the United States previously granted visas to Russian military personnel with ease. However, since the onset of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the rejection rate has surged significantly.
According to data from the US State Department, in 2023, at least 40% of all applications faced rejection. Contrastingly, prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the rejection rate for total applications hovered between 15% and 17%.
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