More than 113,000 Russian citizens crossed into Georgia through the Verkhny Lars checkpoint over the past week following rumors of a new military draft, Politico reported
On Aug. 20 alone, over 20,000 people crossed the border. Russia’s Federal Customs Service confirmed the figures significantly exceed crossing levels from previous years.
Armenia is also preparing for a potential influx of draft evaders. Alen Simonyan, Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, told TV Rain that Yerevan will not hinder those seeking to avoid being sent to the Ukrainian front.
“To a Russian person, I can say only one thing: ‘Welcome to Armenia,’” Simonyan said, as cited by The Moscow Times. “Here they will find everything they were looking for... And they will return to Russia whenever it is convenient for them.”