Russians flee country en masse amid fears of quiet mobilization - Politico
Illustrative photo: The Kremlin is preparing for a quiet mobilization as Russians flee the country en masse (Getty Images)
A huge flow of people and vehicles has been recorded at Russia's border with Georgia. Thousands of Russians are fleeing the country, fearing that the Kremlin is preparing a new wave of mobilization, Politico reports.
Queues at the border with Georgia
More than 113,000 Russians crossed the Upper Lars checkpoint last week alone. This is one of the largest flows recorded since the start of the war and comes amid growing speculation about a new wave of conscription.
Georgia saw a similar situation in the fall of 2022. After Russia announced partial mobilization and called up 300,000 men, more than 100,000 Russians entered the country in just one week.
Georgia is one of the few neighboring countries where Russian citizens can enter without a visa.
Kremlin officially denies it
Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, told reporters that the Kremlin does not need mass mobilization.
"We do not need mass mobilization at the moment; it is neither planned nor expected, as far as I know," Nebenzya said.
Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov, meanwhile, claims that any talk of mobilization is being "planted by the Ukrainian authorities."
On August 25, Ukraine's permanent representative to the UN, Andrii Melnyk, called on Russians to leave the country, warning of a new wave of forced mobilization following the sham State Duma elections.
According to Melnyk, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin plans to mobilize up to 500,000 people and send them to fight in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, according to data released by Ukrainian intelligence on August 27, the dictator has approved the recruitment of female prisoners from jails and penal colonies under 11 articles of the Criminal Code.
The Kremlin plans to recruit 300,000 people into the military this year and another 300,000 in 2027.
