At least 200,000 Russians left the country after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s mobilization order in an exodus that’s causing turmoil at the borders and stirring fears in neighboring states about potential instability.
While Russia hasn’t released official data, statistics from Georgia, Kazakhstan and the European Union showed the scale of the departures. The total is likely an underestimate as other nearby countries popular with Russians including Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey haven’t disclosed arrival figures.
On a mountain highway at the border with Georgia, thousands of vehicles formed lines stretching for miles as Russian men eligible for the call-up flocked to escape to the Caucasus state that Putin’s army invaded in 2008.
