Russians make plans to flee, while 1,300 arrested protesting Putin's war

Following Vladimir Putin's speech on September 21, in which he announced 300,000 reservists would be called upon to fight in Ukraine, one can't help but wonder how the average Russian feels about it. It is after all the first mobilization draft in the country since the second world war.

If Google Trends is any indication, many Russians are at least thinking about leaving following Putin's speech. Google's search measurement tool has made it clear that millions of Russian citizens want to flee the country as soon as possible.

Search terms such as 'tickets,' 'plane,' 'train tickets,' 'how to leave Russia', and 'moving to Kazakhstan' spiked yesterday following Putin's partial mobilization announcement.

Meanwhile, the Aviasales website, one of the best known in Russia, announced that flights to nearby ex-Soviet countries such as Georgia, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, or Armenia were sold out.

According to The Moscow Times, flights to Tbilisi (Georgia), Istanbul (Turkey), and Yerevan (Armenia) were sold out in a matter of minutes after Putin's announcement.

The Turkish Airlines website states that all flights in and out of Minsk in Belarus and Sochi, Rostov, Yekaterinburg, and Moscow in Russia, have been canceled until October 31.

And what about Serbia? Well, those who want to travel to Belgrade will have to wait until October, as there are no flights available before then, as reported by Air Serbia.

Obviously, the demand has made the supply skyrocket in price and with some tickets reaching prohibitive price ranges, according to media outlets such as CNBC.

The Spanish newspaper El País collected examples of how flight prices have skyrocketed. Flying from Moscow to the southern region of Vladikavkaz has gone from $70 to $750.

The cost of flights with Siberian Airlines from Moscow to Yerevan has increased up to four times the average rate, with flights costing around $2954.05. Even more astonishing, the price from Moscow to Belgrade leaving on September 25: $8862.15!!!

Photo: Web Aviasales

In addition, closed flights between Russia and the European Union countries further complicates the escape plans of millions of Russians...that is, if Putin doesn't close the borders first.

When asked at a press conference, Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin, did not want to confirm (or deny) if there are plans to close the borders. Regardless, the reservists summoned to go to the front are prohibited from leaving the country.

On the other hand, some countries, such as Poland and Latvia, have closed their borders to the Russians as punishment for the attack on Ukraine. Finland, at the moment, is not one of them.

However, Finland's borders may not be open to the Russians much longer. Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said in a press conference that the country is looking for "a national solution to "limit or completely prevent" tourism from Russia following the invasion of Ukraine," as reported by The Daily Sabah.

Some Russian citizens have been brave enough to speak to Western media about their feelings about Putin's mobilization call. A man named Alexander, aged 33, told The Guardian, "I'd rather leave than fight in this war. If they call me up, then I would want to leave [the country]."

However, Russia recently passed a strict new law criminalizing desertion, likely resulting in 15 years in prison for deserters according to CNN.

So, Alexander is realistic about what would happen if he is drafted, saying, "It's impossible," and admitting that in the end, he would likely "have to go." Nonetheless, he indicated to The Guardian that he hopes to find a way out of it.

A mother worried her son could be drafted told The Guardian, "This is the thing everyone was afraid of when the war started."

Meanwhile, the media reported protests against the war across 38 cities in Russia on September 21. However, they are rather ineffective since it is illegal to do so.

CNN reported that over 1,300 people were arrested on September 21 after participating in anti-war protests throughout the country.

According to The Guardian, a man detained while protesting yelled, "I don't want to die for Putin and for you!" as the police hauled him away.

CNN also reported that social media videos from protests in eastern Siberia showed people carrying signs reading, "No to war! No to mobilization!" and "Our husbands, fathers, and brothers do not want to kill other husbands and fathers!"

Another protester in the videos said, "We want our fathers, husbands, and brothers to remain alive … and not leave their children as orphans. Stop the war and don't take our people!"

To make matters worse, the spokeswoman of the independent monitoring group OVD-Info Maria Kuznetsova told CNN via telephone that many arrested protestors are being drafted directly into Russia's military.

However, not everyone is against the mobilization or is afraid of being drafted. A man who spoke to The Guardian said that he believed it was "his patriotic duty to go into the army" and said, "I want to be with my country."