YEREVAN. –  CIS country residents are actively obtaining Russian citizenship.

According to  Rosstat, in the first half of 2011, 159 thousand people obtained Russian citizenship, 15 thousand of which are Armenians and more than half are citizens of former Soviet republics.

In the first places are Uzbekistan (28.6 thousand) and Kirgizstan (19.9 thousand). About 30 thousand people moved to Russia from Caucasus, 1.6 thousand from Baltic republics, 3 thousand from China, and 1.9 thousand from Germany, reports Novi Region news agency.