Look qwerty68, this is a common thing which has invaded the culture of many slavic states and in particular Russia. Things are very very very bad right now especially for women. Economies have take a tail spin, yada yada yada. Just one way things have impacted these places negatively is that the average lifespan in these places has plummeted. As a result, people are trying to get out and if they can't afford to leave they find it necessary to do so by other means - including the internet. Russian women looking to be 'mail order brides' has become so frequent one can say it is now ingrained in the culture. They look for a man - vulnerable regardless of finances - to be a potential route out of the country. All they want is to escape and marry someone. It has become a common way to do so. Please please please don't allow yourself to fall prey to this scam and become one of the many taken advantage of. I implore you to consider this.