Alevtina Ivanova and other Russian bachelorettes like her are looking for a few good men – abroad.

"Unfortunately, in our collapsed economy, very few men are able to support a family properly,'' she says.

"Russian men lack confidence, they become fatalistic, they drink, they die young. It's not surprising that Russian women pin their hopes elsewhere.''

Ms. Ivanova, a veteran of half-a-dozen serious cyberrelationships with European and American men, is among thousands of Russian women turning to the Internet to meet Westerners. The potential suitors are equally frustrated with the dating prospects in their home countries.

"American women are too independent, too demanding, too critical,'' says Chris, a middle-aged US businessman visiting Moscow to meet "several very nice ladies'' he contacted over the Web. The visitor, who asked that his last name not be used, cites a joke often repeated here: "A Russian wife wants to keep house for you. An American wife wants to get rid of you, and keep the house."

Dozens of Web-based agencies are busy playing match- maker, for fees paid by both the women, who send in their pictures and bios for posting on international websites, and the men, who can obtain contact information for the women who pique their interest.

The agencies claim that romance is blossoming all over, and that thousands of happy Russian e-mail order brides head West every year.

''We get about 300 applicants every single day, mostly women,'' says Anna Kuznetsova, manager of Eye-2-Eye, a large, Moscow-based international dating agency. "The technology may be modern, but the process of men meeting women is as ancient as time."

Though there are no firm statistics, it is estimated that between 4,000 and 6,000 women from the former USSR marry US citizens each year. One agency currently lists 25,000 women from Russia and other former Soviet republics seeking Western mates; there are dozens more agencies, each offering thousands of would-be brides. Some agencies have branched into travel, translation and other services to profit from what they say is an exploding traffic.

While some describe these international e-introductions as offering matches made in heaven, others see nightmares in cyberspace.

''People bring their illusions as well as their dreams to this market,'' says Tatiana Gurko, head of the independent Center for Gender Studies in Moscow. "Like any physical place, the Internet has predators lurking about, and sometimes they may be hard to spot.''

Western men increasingly report being ripped off by wily Russian women, who write sweet e-mails, send sexy digital photos, hit them up for cash, and then disappear.

On the other side, tales filtering back to Russia of Internet marriages gone sour – including the murder of a Russian mail-order bride in the US – have put women on their guard.

But Ivanova, who now works as an adviser to DiOritz, a large Moscow matchmaking agency, says that, although none of her cyber-relationships have led to marriage, she has had no regrettable experiences.

''You can find out everything you need to know about a man in five e-mails,'' she says breezily. "Men are fairly obvious, you just need to question them properly."

To her, the requirements on both sides are clear: "A woman need only be attractive and educated, but a man must have property, means, and a good job.''

Yelena Khronina, who plans to soon wed "a wonderful Norwegian man'' she met via the Internet, says her dream has come true.

"It's so hard to be a woman in Russia,'' Ms. Khronina sighs. "But then you visit this beautiful, orderly, prosperous country, and spend time with a man who treats you with kindness and respect. Why would anyone say no to that?''

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