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Migration service suggests automated information systems at borders

A parliamentarian asked Romodanovsky when the initiative of a plastic passport might be implemented

MOSCOW, March 21 (Itar-Tass) — Russia’s Head of the Federal Migration Service Konstantin Romodanovsky suggests equipping all border crossing stations by automated information systems to prevent illegal stay in the capital and other cities.

During the government’s hearing at the State Duma on Wednesday, a parliamentarian asked a question about the “Western drift, where people from across the Urals migrate to megalopolises.”

“Right, we see the migration situation, where Moscow, St. Petersburg, the Moscow region are places to where 45 percent of all foreign citizens come,” Romodanovsky said. “But I do not think it possible to ban by means of some permissive or banning mechanisms entrance in megalopolises. This is typical for the entire world and it /ban/ would be non-civilised.”

“It would not be a panacea, but rather a very important element, which may improve the situation, if we equip all border crossing stations with information systems, which would forward information on-line to the Federal Migration Service,” he continued. “This system has been working at Moscow airports. If we manage to programme the system in the back-forwards mode, we shall control the situation clearly, and the number of ‘voyages’ to the capital and illegal stays will be much fewer.”

A parliamentarian asked Romodanovsky when the initiative of a plastic passport might be implemented.

“Sberbank is working on the universal electronic card,” Romodanovsky replied. “There are many ideas about this document. I believe it should be a kind of an ID.”

“If this is done, domestic passports would not be needed,” Romodanovsky said. “This document is clearly overloaded.”

“It is merely an identifying document, but it is being used for many issues, connected with social and financial aspects,” he said. “We should be approaching a civilised level, so that the electronic card is a ‘key’ to the information on a person, and so that it may be used promptly.”

“A /plastic/ document would have a longer life than the passport, which worns out and which we are afraid to lose,” he concluded.