Russians left for Georgia, Armenia, and Serbia in large numbers in the third quarter of this year amid rumors of a new wave of mobilization. A record number of Russian citizens left the country during that period.
The figures reached a 17-year high, according to border-crossing statistics, newsmaker.md reports. The data show that more than 660,000 people travelled to Georgia between July and September, 43,000 more than in the third quarter of 2025, when the previous record was set.
The number of departures was 43% higher than during the 2022 mobilization, when more than 461,000 Russian citizens were recorded as having left the country.
More than 402,000 Russians traveled to Armenia during the same period this year, compared with over 344,000 the previous year. The figure recorded in the third quarter of last year had been the highest on record until now.
The data also show that in no other quarter since 2010 has the number of Russians leaving for Armenia been as high as in 2026.
More than 64,000 Russians traveled to Serbia between July and September, roughly 14,000 more than in the same period last year. The previous record was set in the third quarter of 2024, when over 53,000 Russian citizens visited the country.
Since the summer, there has been public discussion of the possible mobilization of some 300,000 to 500,000 Russians to be sent to the front in Ukraine.
