Tsiskaridze: We will not have foreign students

The rector of the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, choreographer Nikolai Tsiskaridze said that foreign students began to leave Russia. It is reported by Interfax.

“Unfortunately, the policy is very terrible. A huge number of artists, my students, who worked both at the Bolshoi and at the Mariinsky Theater, have already left. Colossal pressure has been put on them, ”the choreographer said on March 5 at a meeting of the United Russia commission on education and science.

According to him, the reason is pressure from abroad.

“I have received so many letters from students apologizing that they are leaving the country, that they hope to return and so on. I did a lot for these boys and girls to stay here and connect their lives with Russia, but they were offered to leave the country in a very ugly form, ”he said.

Tsiskaridze said that the Vaganova Academy also faced a mass exodus of foreign students – future ballet dancers, and, judging by the volume of the outflow of students, the number of foreign students will become less, which, in turn, will lead to financial problems.

“Unfortunately, apparently, we will not have foreign students. And this is a huge loss for us, because it is off-budget. We need to think about how simple it is to provide assistance to those universities in the field of art, which now will not be able to teach for money and earn money. This is a very serious matter. This will affect both the remuneration of teachers and the life of educational institutions, because we spent this money in different directions, ”he added.

Tsiskaridze also noted that this will also affect “soft power” – the spread of Russian culture in the world.

Earlier, St Petersburg University promised to help with the transfer to the university for Russian students who will experience difficulties in continuing their studies abroad.