Victoria Ponomareva

Immediately after Putin announced mobilization, many of those who fall under it first of all began to leave Russia in a hurry - despite the subsidies, lack of savings and fear of the unknown. The Insider talked with those who left for how they relate to the war and what they encountered on the borders.

Content

• Alexey, 27 years old, a former contractor: "Everyone who goes to Ukraine is now already corpses"

• Andrey, ex-shooter, 30 years old: “Better I walk 19 kilometers without water and food than to kill Ukrainians”

• Vladimir, received a summons, 38 years old: "I do not want to stir hands in blood for the sake of incomprehensible goals of the government"

• Julia, left with her boyfriend: "For 80 thousand, one could go around the line with a milek"

Alexey, 27 years old, a former contractor: "Everyone who goes to Ukraine is now already corpses"

I began to collect things a day before the announcement of mobilization - I just leafed through the news and understood what everything was going on. I left right away on the 21st. I was going to buy a ticket in advance, but did not know whether they would be released or not, so I immediately went to the airport to deal with this already on the spot. Arriving at the airport, I managed to take the last ticket, which stayed, and it was no longer important that it was a business class.

There are not many questions at passport control: how I relate to the “special operation”, how long I plan to be in Belarus, for what purpose is food. I replied that I was thinking, and they calmly missed me. On the first day, no one was wrapped. My friends, who also fell in a hurry, then said that everything went without any problems.

Among my friends, the “special operation” supports a very small percentage. On the contrary, I have a positive attitude to what is happening because I believe that the Donbass really needed to be protected - but not in such a way and not to the extent that I had to destroy the cities of Ukraine and allow civilians to die.

In addition, when a professional army is fighting at the front, this is one thing, but there is nothing to do civilian in this pitch. They will all die. Everyone who is now going to Ukraine and has never encountered military service - these are corpses, no matter how cruel it sounds.

I served on a contract, thanks to my friends, I got into the special forces regiment, and on February 24 we were already taken to exercises in Belarus, they said that they were sent for a week, but then they threw it to Ukraine. No matter how I try to hold my face, I frankly say that it is scary. For me, the most shocking moment was the body of a child who did not have a hand, you look at it, and everything breaks inside you. It is impossible to forget: a bloodied, armless children's corpse dreams of at night, and this is the future of those whom the military registration and enlistment office is now taking.

There are a lot of losses there, there are not enough personnel. Putin is trying to solve this problem with mobilization, but, unfortunately, this will only lead to the next shaft of deaths.

Andrey, ex-shooter, 30 years old: “Better I walk 19 kilometers without water and food than to kill Ukrainians”

I am a shooter, recently served, and when they announced mobilization, I immediately realized that I would be called first. The wife was scared, friends began to call - everyone thought what to do and how. I was against this war from the very beginning: how else, if you have relatives in the Donbass? I do not want to kill, I just don’t understand how you can deprive a person who does not threaten you with anything.

Of course, I had thoughts that it could reach mobilization, but I did not assume that this would happen at one moment, so at first there was confusion - neither I nor my wife could decide to leave in any way.

On the 23rd, a friend who works at the military registration and enlistment office called me, and said that I have a couple of days while still continuing to update the bases. We began to look for tickets. I issued a power of attorney for my sister, agreed that she would look after the house, for a long time to look for who to attach a cat - because you will not go with her so easily, and we did not do any international certificates and chips. While I was dealing with everything, my wife constantly wrote that tickets were disappearing.

A friend who works at the military registration and enlistment office called me, and said that I have a couple of days while continuing to update the databases

We decided to fly to the Ministry of Council, and from there to get to Georgia. But as soon as they rushed to watch the options, there were no longer tickets. We continued to monitor, and suddenly saw tickets. They quickly bought them, collected things and flew away. I decided that if they don’t miss me and catch me to send me to the front, I will better write a refusal and sit down than to go to kill.

A taxi was taken from mineral waters to Vladikavkaz. It was very intense, because there were not enough cars. The taxi driver warned that the traffic police would slow down and the passage will have to be resolved, therefore, if we want to get to Vladikavkaz without unnecessary problems, you need to pay him from above, and he would “agree”. We agreed: there was no choice. At one of the posts, they categorically refused to skip: the driver said that three more thousand needed, and he “decides” everything, otherwise we won’t go further. We paid.

We were very nervous that there would be no money left to live in Georgia for the first time, but there were no more problems with posts, and we gradually reached the checkpoint with Ossetia. There they got up for nine hours in a traffic jam, absolutely everything was clogged - the side of the road was full of cars, people went out onto the road, talked, just sat on the ground, because they were unbearably tired of being in the car.

At some point, when we were landed somewhere after leaving the village, we got out of the car and went on foot-with two suitcases and heavy backpacks. If you believe the cards, then the checkpoint was 19 kilometers, but it is better to go through them and fall from fatigue than to kill Ukrainians.

The cork was absolutely lifeless. It was more like a mishmash of cars and people: a strip for trucks, for cars, for those who with a bicycle (we also wanted to buy from the locals at first, but we had a price of 30 thousand), for pedestrians - there is absolutely nowhere to push through. Also, taxi drivers, who cruised back and forth, taking pedestrians selected on the road, constantly wedged into the traffic jam and slowed down, not allowing him to go further.

If suddenly they don’t miss me and catch me to send me to the front, I will better write a refusal and sit down than to go to kill

While we were dragging past, no one moved one hundred meters. Many people already spent the night in the car for more than a day, they ended with water and food. I remember that a little girl got out of the car nearby - all the disheveled, grimacing, began to cry that she wanted to go home and would no longer sit here.

Gradually, we got to the beginning of the foot, stood for several hours, the checkpoint passed only in the morning. They were very afraid of questions, but, as it turned out, in vain. Everything was quite standard: to whom you are going, do you know about mobilization, whether the agenda came. The border guard looked at his computer and said that you could go.

Then - a neutral zone, there is also a long walking line, to stand exhausting and cold, because the wind constantly penetrates. Someone wedges into the crowd all the time-we stood so for seven hours, and we ended with water. It is good that volunteers began to fill the bottles on the Georgian checkpoint and bring it in line.

There were a lot of abandoned bicycles on the side of the road - many, when they go through the checkpoint, simply leave them there. They said that some border guards even collect them and then sell them.

Bicycle in a neutral zone

Photo: The interlocutor The Insider

The Georgian border guards did not ask anything, it was evident that they were very tired. I only heard how the one who put me the stamp said in an undertone: “How many of you are, you are all driving and driving.” After the border, we agreed with a taxi driver who was nearby, he agreed to take to Tbilisi for three thousand per person.

This is very exhausting and causes severe stress, but it becomes calmer: you understand that, despite the fact that you had to quit everything and walk almost 20 kilometers almost without water and relaxation, you will not become expenditure material in an unnecessary and terrible war.

Vladimir, received a summons, 38 years old: "I do not want to stir hands in blood for the sake of incomprehensible goals of the government"

I tried not to delve into the nuances of the conflict in Ukraine. I still do not realize that there is actually behind this offensive, but I do not want to die and kill. I do not want my hands to be in the blood because of the goals of the government that I do not understand.

The news about mobilization did not take me by surprise: I expected it was possible, although I did not assume that so soon. Just the day after Putin’s statement, we persistently knocked on the apartment, but we did not open. And then near the door I found a summons. Therefore, I urgently decided to leave, hoping that if I did not sign anything, then this is not recorded anywhere.

I still do not realize that there really is behind this offensive, but I do not want to die and kill

There was a problem with tickets at once. I wanted to fly to Uzbekistan or Chisinau, but there were either no tickets or were very expensive, and we had a few money. There was no time left, and I decided to get to Samara to go to Kazakhstan from there. He took a ticket that managed to grab, collected things and went to the airport.

I was very afraid that they would not miss. At the control, they asked if I served for what purpose I had food and whether I received a summons. I lied that I did not receive. Inside, everything trembled, thought that now they would find that the agenda nevertheless came to me, but everything worked out-they put a stamp and missed. Maybe precisely because I flew away the next day, they still had no lists that they began to talk about later.

In Samara at the station he took a taxi. The driver asked for 10 thousand for the car - 5 per person, but since I was alone, they agreed that he would take 4. I literally brought the traffic jam before the checkpoint. It was huge - about 20 kilometers, so many, as people on the road told me, cost 2-3 days. Hearing about this, I did not try to get hooked on someone, but just went on foot. It took about six hours, terribly exhausting. I had a backpack and a bag with me. The backpack was absolutely unbearable: I tried to fit as many things as possible into it.

I walked to the checkpoint for six hours, and this is unusually exhausting

Closer to the checkpoint, the walk began. There were 200 people, they moved very slowly, I stood eight hours. Oddly enough, they didn’t really ask me questions, they just put a stamp. It seems to me that I was just lucky, because my friend, who had traveled after, said that with him some men began to wrap. On the border with Kazakhstan, everything went even faster. After her, I already took a taxi and drove to Uralsk.

Julia, left with her boyfriend: "For 80 thousand, one could go around the line with a milek"

The three of us left - I, my boyfriend and son. Despite the fact that the guy had category B, we understood that they could call him, because we have already heard about such cases more than once in recent days. We thought about leaving since the end of February, but the mobilization announcement finally knocked out the soil from under the feet, and we firmly decided to leave.

The choice was between Kazakhstan and Georgia, chose Georgia. We quickly studied the route, the stories of other people and discussions in thematic groups in Telegram helped a lot. We went from Krasnodar to Vladikavkaz and further in Tbilisi. The car was found quite quickly, we had two hours for the training camp. They took everything they needed, said goodbye to their relatives and went. Relatives supported our decision - they negatively relate to the events of this year, like ourselves.

We threw our favorite work, apartment and car. On September 24, we left Krasnodar, at about seven in the morning we were already in the checkpoint between Kabardino-Balkaria and Northern Ossetia and, without reaching the Vladikavkaz, got into the cork. After a while, we realized that the checkpoint was closed and the cars simply did not produce with the exception of the 15th region. We stood for five hours.

After some time, I went to the beginning of the cork and saw several people surrounding the inspector. People were indignant, it was especially difficult for those with young children. Then the inspector took pity and ordered all cars with children to rebuild into the right lane and drive up to the checkpoint. I ran to the car, we rebuilt to the right and drove up closer, but another inspector reacted to this skeptical, said that he decided everything here, asked to show the child and noted that at eight years he did not look small to make exceptions. Be that as it may, but through the checkpoint they didn’t miss anyone - we just stood in a separate strip.

Tired of waiting, went on foot at the checkpoint and there they found a taxi driver who offered to take us before the start of the cork in the Upper Lars, bypassing Vladikavkaz. We immediately agreed.

The car cost 20 thousand rubles. During the trip, the driver was called several times, and he called the price already at 25 and 30 thousand.

Pedestrians in the neutral zone

Photo: The interlocutor The Insider

Initially, when we drove up, the traffic jam to the checkpoint looked acceptable: the cars stood in one row, everything was measured. Someone was sitting with open doors and listened to music, someone walked around and talked with neighbors on the road. They saw a grandmother who played with her grandchildren near the car, and there was no such disaster, into which everything turned later.

We did not want to stand in the car for several days, because some had it stretched for three days, and therefore decided to go on foot. The navigator showed 18 kilometers to Upper Lars. We had a large suitcase with us, three backpacks and a bag with a laptop. It was hard, but not as much as I expected. I was more worried about my son, but even he endured everything steadily.

There are no stores on the route, so there is simply nowhere to stop and just buy something. We had several bottles of water with us, sausage slices, bread, bagels, chocolate and apples-I did not want to take much due to additional weight. We had a snack once, but the water still ended quickly. It was only to save the fact that next to the road was a stream in which it was possible to dial.

Then the cork was significantly modified-from a calm line of cars into one strip, at first it grew into two or three, and then and more. A lot of cars, tired people, the level of aggression increased markedly-someone signaling, someone cursed. If at the beginning of the cork we calmly walked with a suitcase, and cyclists rode by or pedestrians walked by, then at the end even without a suitcase could not be squeezed everywhere.

At the beginning of the traffic jam we walked with a suitcase, cyclists rode by or walked pedestrians, at the end - even without a suitcase it was impossible to squeeze out

The tension has grown several times. People cooperated and tried to help drivers, agreed among themselves, did not let the cars on the oncoming lane.

For about 20 minutes I was looking for a car to get hooked to cross the border, while the guy and my son was resting, but nothing came of it. Someone just refused, someone was already scored, someone called the cosmic amount. Taking advantage of the fact that people have nowhere to go, they are exhausted expensive and morally depressed, the locals lifted prices to the ceiling.

My boyfriend found the car - he agreed with one Georgian who took us to him. We were taken through all the points of the checkpoint and in Tbilisi absolutely free.

When we got into the car, 800 meters remained until the end of the cork, but we overcame them the next 13 hours. It was very exhausting.

While you are in traffic, you can order the delivery of food, water or gasoline for the cost several times higher than the market. There is only one store on the entire route - just in front of the checkpoint, but the line there resembles the line in the Louvre or the Tretyak, and there is practically no assortment, and you can pay only in cash.

There are many those who offer to bring to the checkpoint on a motorcycle, ATV or machine with flashing lights. The cost of this service starts from 30 thousand per motorcycle and from 80 - for support with the machine. The closer the car to the checkpoint, the sooner it will pass the border, so the price tag is above.

Locals offer to lead the checkpoint with accompaniment for 80 thousand or more

On the entire route stood a traffic police, which were fined for traveling to the oncoming lane. But these same inspectors closed their eyes when someone was driving with flashing lights with a caravan of cars following.

At the checkpoint itself, the sight was even more depressing. People sat on their suitcases, stood with children, there were separate cyclists. On the side of the road were those who, apparently, could not find a car to move on.

We passed the Russian checkpoint in 30–40 minutes. At the check of passports, everything was quite quickly, but the border guard asked a few questions to my boyfriend and tried to crush morally.

After we got into a cork in the neutral zone due to the fact that the tunnel was packed with wagons. When we drove up to the Georgian checkpoint, the gates were closed. There were not many cars, but the line of people grew very quickly. We stood for several hours. PPP passed in about 10 minutes, Georgians put the stamps very quickly.