As Putin’s war in Ukraine raged, the Russians fled their country on one of the only escape routes
Like a clock, twice a day, every day, a train departs from Russia’s former imperial capital, meandering through pristine countryside before arriving in Helsinki.
In the Helsinki metropolitan area, there are usually empty seats on the express train arriving at the ninth pier at the station.
But a few days after the start of the Ukrainian war, the trip from St. Petersburg to Helsinki was sold out.
Since last month, a steady stream of Russians has piled up not only on trains but also on buses and cars to escape from a place they no longer recognize.
Although Russia is not as free as other places in Europe, citizens used to be able to protest in the streets, post their thoughts online and travel around Europe.
But then everything changed. Global sanctions and a new law on Ukraine’s attack to prevent the spread of “false information” mean that present-day Russia is more like a hermit kingdom.
Opposition figures are sentenced to long sentences behind bars, and online comments are closely monitored. Anyone who dares to mention the word “war” is in danger of getting into the wrath of local authorities.
Those fleeing fear that it will only be exacerbated by increased economic insecurity, the suppression of freedom of expression and rumors of a martial law.
Yet the closure of Vladimir Putin to most countries in Russian airspace means that Russians tired of their government have limited opportunities to leave the country.
The list will shrink further on Monday, when Finnish Railways will stop operating services between Helsinki and St. Petersburg.
According to the Finnish State Railways, train traffic was sold out two weeks after the Russian invasion. It is unclear what will happen after they are suspended.
But leaving Russia and arriving in Europe is only the first step for those fleeing the country, as the way forward is full of obstacles such as economic uncertainty, bureaucracy and global indifference.
Within the Russian coercion
Helsinki Central Station is a busy place, full of workers, tourists, students and, more recently, anti-Russian protesters.
When they gathered at Pier 9 one day, a handful kept handwritten posters or photographs of Ukrainians to Russian passengers as they passed. According to Time Magazine.
It was not a warm welcome, but a sign of how Russians are treated in Europe today.
The locals have some sympathy for the plight of ordinary Russians who oppose the war. But Mr Putin and those in Russia who support the attack are also frustrated.
Russian political activist Elena, who wants to use only her first name to protect her identity, shares the world’s anger at the war.
He recently fled to Helsinki before flying to France, where he plans to seek asylum.
“This is impossible to support in the 21st century [Mr Putin] only bomb another country. “
A few days after the attack in a demonstration in Russia, Elena felt hopelessness and despair sinking as she dropped her turnout.
As he spent his daily life, he hated the people around him who “used it as if nothing had happened.”
“I hear aggression [towards Ukrainians] and support [for] Putin. I felt like I was in Nazi Germany. “
He decided to leave because he knew he could use his work visa to stay in Europe when he applied for political asylum.
It is an indication of a bitter reality: leaving Russia now requires a certain amount of privileges – money, visas and even friends abroad.
Fleeing to Europe is only the first step
Freshly departed from the train in St. Petersburg, passengers quickly leave, greeting friends, or moving to other piers to leave for unknown destinations.
Among them is Anastasia, who looks around anxiously as she walks to a nearby ticket office.
ABC has been asked not to use his real name.
“I’m going to France. Hopefully forever,” he tells ABC.
As he approaches one of the planes to get a seat on the train going to the airport, he realizes it won’t accept cash. He tries his card, but it doesn’t work.
That is the first sign that his stay in Europe will not be easy. Anastasia – like all other Russian citizens – cannot use her cards here due to the ban imposed by Mastercard and Visa.
Anastasia hopes to get to France to meet her boyfriend, as she only has the money she could take with her.
Tamara, who doesn’t want ABC to use her full name, is in a similar situation. His family fled to Russia in the 1990s after Abkhazia became a breakaway state.
“Once you’ve left your home country and lived your life somewhere else, you don’t really have a home country,” he says.
He fled Russia after fearing his colleagues and the people around him who supported the war. Her plan is to travel from Helsinki to Germany, where she will meet her boyfriend and get married.
But she faces an uphill struggle as she left Russia before getting the necessary papers to get married in Europe.
The nervous whispers of the state of war
Russians face many bureaucratic hurdles if they want to leave the country, including visas to most European countries, unless they have an EU passport.
Without them, travelers will have to start a complicated process of applying for political asylum or a tourist visa.
There is a lot of uncertainty involved in both processes, but there is a risk that some will be willing to take over an alternative: a war they don’t believe in.
Russia’s defense ministry has already admitted that some conscripts are fighting in Ukraine, but have previously denied it.
But there have also been rumors for some time about the introduction of a martial law.
It is unclear how President Putin would use the power of war if enacted, and what the limits would be, given The Russian constitution only says they would be “defined by the federal constitution.”
Some, like Elena, fear the state of war means that Russia’s borders would be completely closed and residents could not leave.
Rumors escalated into fever two weeks ago when Putin announced an extraordinary session of the Federal Council of the Russian Parliament.
The state of war was not declared, and the Kremlin has rejected such speculation as “scams.”However, a few Russians in Helsinki acknowledged that this was one of the reasons why their friends fled.
“It mainly concerns my male friends aged 18-27, who can be legally admitted to the army,” Anna Busheva, a Russian student living in Helsinki, tells ABC.
But while Russians living in the country are afraid of what they will face if they stay, those living outside the country will experience similar anxiety about what will happen if they ever return home.
Defy the mighty Kremlin
Many who were in Europe before the war started are stuck in an embarrassing impasse, unable to be left without a visa, but worried about what will happen to them when they return home.
Anna has been studying in Helsinki for the last two years, but she is worried about losing her visa when the ruble falls.
If he can’t pay his tuition, he has “very few options” for what to do next.
Is he at risk or will he return to Russia?
“Returning home is not an option for me right now,” he says, adding that he has spoken publicly about his political views on social media.
Others, like Elena, have vowed not to return as the country continues on its current path.
“I feel like a traitor, I feel like I betrayed my friends who stayed there and couldn’t leave,” he says.
“There are also those who refused to leave and decided to fight. But I no longer have the strength.”
Nevertheless, he is not silent. Russian activists believe they must speak out against the war. If they don’t, they won’t know what’s left of their country when they return one day.