Depopulation and Chinese Migration in the Russian Far East : the Link between Receiving and Sending Countries

Abstract

Since the opening of the Russo-Sino border in the 1990s, Chinese has started to move into the Russian Far East. The increasing Chinese migration to the Russian Far East has been spoken of in warning tones mainly by Russian politicians and the media. In fact, there was no reliable evidence supporting the warning described as the Yellow Peril. Nevertheless, the great population differential between the Russian Far East and Northeastern China was exaggerated mostly by the Russian side, saying that there would be a massive Chinese infiltration to the contiguous Russian territories. This study aims at a fundamental question: Why do Chinese people enter the Russian Far East? The question has previously been overwhelmingly considered only from the perspective of the receiving country. However, both the receiving and sending countries should be considered in resolving this question and understanding the topic comprehensively. As a receiving country, the Russian Far East has been pulling its labor force from abroad since the collapse of the Soviet Union. On the other hand, as a sending county, Northeast China has enjoyed a favorable environment for migration since the economic reform in the 1990s. However, the push and pull factors in Chinese migration to the Russian Far East have failed to satisfy each other, so far.