On November 5th of this year, Vladimir Putin quietly signed into law Decree No. 821: “Executive Order On the Temporary Procedure for Granting Citizenship of the Russian Federation and Issuing Residence Permits in the Russian Federation,” which contained a provision that “certain categories of capable men aged 18 to 65” must now be subject to military service in order to apply for permanent residency or citizenship in Russia.

And on November 16th, Arend Feenstra — obviously concerned for himself and his 16-year-old son Wesley — appeared in a chat on YouTube with a Russian immigration expert to discuss the meaning of the new edict.

The Feenstras, as we know, have built a farm in Nizhny Novgorod and settled into life in Russia over the past two years. In 2024, they were granted temporary residency visas — the first step toward permanent residency, for which they will become eligible in 2027 . . . by which time young Wesley will be 18 years of age.

Although Arend, in the November broadcast, tried to put the best face on the issue, he was obviously and understandably concerned. But the Kremlin has been uncharacteristically silent about the new decree, even as the war in Ukraine — still officially known as the “special military operation” — rages on.

Fast forward just three weeks, when Arend Feenstra makes the surprise announcement that the entire family — all ten of them — will be leaving on Tuesday, December 9th, for an indefinite period of at least a couple of months, on a much-needed vacation in their home country of Canada, with a planned side trip to Florida in the U.S.

While repeating several times that they would be “100% for sure” returning to their farm in Russia, Arend led us on a brief tour of the farm they have built with their own hands and would now be leaving in the care of their tenant farmers, the Pulley family from Australia, who themselves appeared on the scene rather suddenly and mysteriously just a few weeks ago.

As everyone hastily packed for the long journey, they dutifully filmed their progress, and repeatedly asked the youngest children if they were excited about the vacation . . . while Justin Pulley was being given a last-minute lesson in driving the farm tractor. And I had to wonder how, if this trip had been so well-planned, they had let that little detail slide until the last moment.

At last, Tuesday arrived and they were off. We followed them on the train from Nizhny Novgorod to Moscow, by Metro from the train station to the airport, and through the surprisingly easy check-in process. But at the train station while still in Nizhny Novgorod, Arend Feenstra let his guard down for just a moment, admitting that — though he is not generally a sentimental guy — he was indeed feeling emotional about leaving their Russian home, because “we’re going to be gone for a while.”

He did not sound, or look, like a man going on a vacation.

In my December 8th report, I had voiced some concerns about the entire scenario: leaving their beloved, hard-earned farm in the hands of inexperienced strangers for so long; spending anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000 — even though allegedly donated by family and “friends” — just for air fare; and the unexplained 2,500-mile detour to Florida.

And today I saw this headline:

“Putin Decree Forces Foreigners Seeking Russian Residency
To Sign Army Contracts”

The article speaks of “a little-publicized decree [issued] last month that requires many foreign men who seek permanent residency or citizenship to sign a contract with the military in the midst of Moscow’s war against Ukraine . . .” [Svetlana Osipova, et al., RFE/RL, December 12, 2025.]

The report continues:

“State-run and privately owned Russian media outlets have made almost no mention of the requirement, which is highly unusual in international practice, since Putin signed Decree No. 821 on November 5.

“But the new measure is already pushing migrants who have built their lives in Russia to choose between conscription and leaving the country . . .” [Id.]

It also told of one Azerbaijani citizen, also now a farmer in Nizhny Novgorod, who only learned of the new requirement when he recently visited a Federal Migration Service office to ask what documents he needed to apply for permanent residency. He and his Russian wife now plan to leave the country, saying, “We don’t know what to do — we are pawns in this meat grinder.” [Id.]

But Arend Feenstra knew about Decree No. 821 almost immediately following its issuance. And barely a month later, he and his entire family are on their way back to Canada for a lengthy “vacation.”

There are such things as coincidences, of course — as when two women show up at a party wearing identical outfits, or co-workers buy each other the same Secret Santa gift. But some apparent coincidences stretch credulity to the breaking point . . . most especially when they involve politics or business.

So I can only reiterate my thoughts of a few days ago, when I mentioned the possibility that the Feenstras might be voluntarily moving back home to the West; or that, if they do intend to return to Russia, they may find themselves no longer welcome there, their property confiscated, and their lives totally upended.

On the other hand, this whole trip might just be another chapter in the ongoing use by the Putin regime of the Feenstra family as propaganda tools to attract conservative, productive immigrants. I suppose we’ll have to wait for their next videos to see what happens.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
12/12/25