Son of Russian spies fights for Canadian citizenship
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TORONTO — Recent university graduate Alex Vavilov was born in Toronto, which would typically qualify him for Canadian citizenship except for one thing: His parents were part of a notorious Russian spy ring in North America.
That is the conflict at the heart of a high-profile citizenship battle as the 23-year-old Vavilov seeks the right to reside permanently in the country where his parents once lived clandestine lives as embedded spies who are the models for the TV show “The Americans.”
The Canadian government says he isn’t entitled to citizenship and has appealed to the Supreme Court to annul the passport granted to him by a lower court. Vavilov’s supporters say a son shouldn’t pay for the sins of his parents while critics contend his claim to be Canadian is a fraud.
