Wow. That sounds all sorts of fucking complicated. And a hell of a gamble.
Yep, it is. Russians have a hard time traveling. We met in Prague for New Years in 1999 (great place to spend it) and she took a train. The Czech Republic was one of about 7 countries she could go to without a visa. I had to send her $300 in cash by DHL so she could show it to the officials at the Czech border to prove she could pay for her trip, otherwise they wouldn't have let her in.