In Russia, men of mobilization age are reportedly being subjected to additional checks when attempting to leave the country. The partisan movement ATESH made the claim on August 18.
According to the movement, its agents among border service and airport employees in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg have reported unofficial screening of men attempting to travel abroad.
ATESH claims that men of mobilization age may be sent for additional checks, causing them to miss their flights. This allegedly also affects people who have valid documents and face no official restrictions on leaving the country.
The movement says unofficial instructions are reportedly already being applied at border crossings, despite Russian authorities continuing to deny plans for a new mobilization campaign.
According to ATESH, border officials have allegedly been instructed not to stop all men of military age, but to conduct additional checks selectively in order to avoid causing panic or drawing public attention to the measures.
The checks reportedly involve delays under various pretexts, including questions about the purpose of travel, inspections of personal belongings, lengthy document checks and database searches. After boarding closes, passengers are allegedly given back their passports without any official decision or explanation for being prevented from boarding.
Ukrainian authorities have previously warned that Russia may be preparing for another mobilization campaign. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia could be preparing for a mobilization drive in the autumn, citing information from Ukrainian intelligence.
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