Due to Russia's Reserve Mobilization Order... 300,000 Men Flee to Neighboring Countries

Entry from Kazakhstan, Finland, Turkey, Mongolia, and others

Russian reservists receiving training at a training ground in the southern region. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] According to Germany's dpa news agency on the 9th (local time), about 300,000 men appear to have fled to neighboring countries after Russia issued a reserve force mobilization order.

Last week, the Kazakhstan Ministry of Interior reported that 200,000 Russians entered Kazakhstan following the announcement of the mobilization order. Kazakhstan shares a border with Russia and allows visa-free entry.

A significant number of men also crossed into Europe through Finland, the last land route to the European Union (EU). Finland banned Russians from entering for tourism purposes nine days after the mobilization order was announced. Border authorities stated that two-thirds of the 66,000 Russians who crossed into the EU before the entry restrictions were implemented passed through Finland.

Unlike other EU countries, Turkey, which continues to operate direct flights with Russia, has not publicly disclosed the number of arrivals. However, it is confirmed that dozens of flights carrying large numbers of young Russian men arrive in Turkey daily.

According to flight data analysis by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), more than 30,000 Russians entered Turkey in the days immediately following the mobilization announcement, and over 1,000 people took flights to Serbia during the same period. Mongolia, which has declared neutrality in the Ukraine war, announced that about 12,000 Russian entries were reported until last month.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.