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The New Diaspora

stream of letters

‘Not Forgotten’: Pen Pals Offer Solace to Russia’s Political Prisoners

YEREVAN, Armenia — At a recent event in Armenia’s capital, Olga Yelsakova was composing a letter to a longtime correspondent. That correspondent...
‘not silent’

Russian Emigres Rally Worldwide in Support of Jailed Navalny

Thousands of Russian emigres in more than 60 cities, from Seoul and London to Yerevan, Vilnius and Belgrade, took part in solidarity rallies Saturday in...
against all odds

Russia’s Local Journalists Struggle to Keep News Flowing – From Home and Abroad

Russian independent media outlet Zvezda in the city of Perm consistently uses the word “war” in its coverage of the fighting in Ukraine &mdash...
upping the pressure

Critical Russian Emigres Should Have Property Seized, Lawmakers Say

Russians who criticize their country after fleeing abroad should have their remaining property confiscated, lawmakers proposed Friday in an apparent effort...
brain drain

Moscow Says 100K IT Specialists Have Left Russia This Year

Around 100,000 IT specialists have left Russia this year, an official said Tuesday, following the start of Moscow's military operation in Ukraine...
home away from home

Russian Emigres in Armenia Fuel Flourishing Food, Creative Scenes

YEREVAN, Armenia — Nearly every hand in the packed auditorium went up when the moderator asked who had arrived in this South Caucasus nation after...
a new passport

Russians Who Fled Ukraine War Seek Armenian Citizenship as Conflict Drags On

YEREVAN, Armenia — A growing number of Russians who fled abroad because of the Ukraine war are seeking Armenian citizenship as the fighting drags...
influx from the north

Kyrgyzstan Sees Struggles, Opportunity in Russian Emigration Wave

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — Russian entrepreneurs Yulia and Ilya Kuleshov worked hard to transform the large house they rented in the Kyrgyz capital into...
receding danger

Russians Who Fled Military Draft Return Home as Panic Fades

Draft-age men who left Russia in fear of being sent to fight in Ukraine are returning home after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an end to the...
grassroots exodus

Russia’s Environmental Activists Move Abroad Amid War, Persecution

Dozens of environmental activists have fled Russia following the invasion of Ukraine in an exodus that has reduced focus on fighting climate change and...
F@ck This Job

In Latvia, Putin’s War on Russian Media Plays Out on the Big Screen

Viewers in Latvia’s capital of Riga came out last week to see a screening of "F@ck This Job," a documentary about independent Russian broadcaster...
free expression

In Georgia's Capital, a Young Russian Rock Group Hopes to Thrive in Exile

“Prisoners of conscience in the hands of bandits and thieves / Order will be disturbed in reality, not in dreams / The force of pressure will push...
Moral Dilemma

Georgia Struggles With Latest Wave of Russian Arrivals

A new piece of street art in a Tbilisi underpass is a play on the classic Soviet "The Motherland Calls" poster from World War II. But instead of holding...
bottleneck point

In Photos: Russians Fleeing Putin's Draft Queue at Georgian Border

Nearly two weeks into Russian President Vladimir Putin's "partial" mobilization for the war in Ukraine, crowds of Russians seeking to escape the draft...
emigre population

Russian Migration Shakes Up Armenian Economy, Society

YEREVAN, Armenia — Igor landed at Yerevan’s Zvartnots airport from Moscow on Tuesday, looking bewildered after his knee-jerk decision to flee...
dodging the draft

Russians Evade Conscription in Istanbul as Mobilization Rumors Become Reality

ISTANBUL — Alexander, 23, remembers panic-buying a ticket from St. Petersburg to this Turkish metropolis shortly after Russia launched its invasion...
tension in tbilisi

‘We Don’t Want To Serve Occupiers’: Backlash in Georgia Against Russian Emigres

Some Georgian businesses require Russian customers to state they don’t support the invasion of Ukraine. 
denied entry

Rising Numbers of Russians Barred From Georgia, Activists Say

“I would not advise other activists to move to Georgia," said one Russian recently not allowed into the South Caucasus country.
'security threat'

Poland, Baltics Agree EU Visa Ban Plan for Russians – Statement

The restrictions will enter into force on Sept. 19.
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