They are Russian, millionaires and go to Florida to give birth to American babies

SUNNY ISLES BEACH, Florida – A few days ago, Russian tourists Anna and Helen were having coffee with their husbands and newborns at Sunny Isles Beach, an international jet-set destination in the south of the state. .

Florida

where he became fashionable among wealthy Russians to give birth to American children.

In the shadow of high rise skyscrapers, such as the Trump Tower and the Porsche Tower, an army of elegantly dressed women are walking around pregnant or with the latest generation of strollers. Most are Russian or from countries of the former Soviet Union.

When asked about their intention to give birth to Sunny Isles Beach, they cite the good weather, the white sand beaches and the turquoise sea of ​​this barrier island north of Sunny Isles Beach.

Miami

.

But Anna, 34, is more direct. "For the American pbadport!" He's laughing. She was pregnant and her baby, Melania – like the first lady – was born two months ago.

She met her fellow Helen at Sunny Isles Beach, who was also accompanying her three-month-old baby in a stroller near the coffee table. Both have invested tens of thousands of dollars and several months in the project, although they do not want to give more details or give their names.

Earnings?

According to an article in the US Constitution that the president

Donald Trump

wants to change, children born on American soil automatically get citizenship and, over time, can study and work in the country without hindrance.

"Good education for our children," said Anna in an English parco. Why Sunny Isles Beach? "You feel at home," he replied. "There are a lot of Russians."

At 21, the little Melania could also sponsor the visa of her parents to bring them to the country, if they wish, thanks to the migratory benefit dubbed "chain migration" also monitored by Trump.

Miami Mama, a company based in Hallandale Beach, a neighboring city that has been offering travel packages for Russian mothers since 2009, is requesting between $ 6,900 and $ 49,000 to provide translation services, accommodation, medical care, transfer to the hospital. Childbirth, citizenship procedures and other services, depending on your web page.

The practice is not illegal, according to US immigration laws. But lying to the authorities is. As reported by the NBC, the FBI raided Miami Mama in 2017 and arrested an employee for making false statements on federal documents in order to obtain pbadports for children.

Little Moscow

Sunny Isles Beach, a small town of about 20,000 inhabitants, began to be dubbed "Little Moscow" since 2010, when beauty salons, supermarkets, restaurants and Russian real estate agencies appeared.

Today, "syrniki", a sweet cheese cake, replaces Cuban croquette and beer is made with dried fish, a custom widely used in

Russia

.

Shop signs are not in English and Spanish, as residents of South Florida are used to seeing them, but in English and Russian. And among them, there are many real estate agents and "pbadport services" for newborns.

It is worth noting that, as reported by the Daily Beast in 2017, many of these new Russian families are lodged in the Donald Trump Towers, although there is no evidence that the president enjoys Russian tourism in Florida.

Relations between Trump and the Moscow government have been under investigation for more than two years.

Most Russians in Sunny Isles refuse to talk to journalists, and those who accept it do so anonymously or without giving their last name. Kate, 35, enters a specialized Russian supermarket called Matryoshka. She is accompanied by her husband and three children and has a stomach of 8 months. Without giving further details, she confirms that she is Russian and only says "give birth". Then he cites good weather as the reason for coming to Florida to have his fourth baby.

Maternity tourism

The so-called "maternity tourism" is not exclusive to Russians. Chinese women have been traveling en mbade for years

California

give birth to their children, while Latin American women, especially Brazilian women, prefer Florida.

There are no data on the number of babies born in the United States as a result of this practice. The Center for Immigration Studies, a conservative organization advocating stopping immigration, said in a 2015 report that maternity tourism is responsible for about 36,000 births a year in the country.

Vera Muzyka, who worked for Russian mothers in Miami in 2014, told the Moscow Times that 40 to 60 babies were born every month from Russian tourists or from countries of the former Soviet Union.

AFP Agency