Quote Originally Posted by chaika View Post
And then just wait for the US to do the same for Russia?
Yeah, for a couple of centuries. ))
You are right, of course, and there are much more Russians hoping to visit the US, than there are Americans going to Russia, and the risk of Americans staying in Russia illegally is very low. But I think it's quite natural that Russia tries to get something in return: US visas policy towards Russia and some CIS countries is unreasonably strict.