Tens of thousands of Russians are desperate to leave the country. Overseas flights were mostly sold out, and at the Verkhniy Lars border station between Russia and Georgia, some had been queuing for days to cross.

In independent Russian media it is now reported that Russia will prevent the departure of all men of combat age.

At the same time, the junior officer “Vadim” sits in his hometown, one of the largest cities in Russia, and is afraid of what will happen.

– We’re scared. They put us in a position where we had to kill or be killed, “Vadim” told Dagbladet.

Via an encrypted video link from Russia, he showed Dagbladet his military credentials confirming his rank as a lieutenant in the Russian armed forces.

The document now qualifies him to be mobilized for Putin’s war in Ukraine, a war he neither supports nor wants to die.

shortage of staff

Both Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergej Shoigu emphasized in their speeches on September 21 that only those with military experience could be called upon in the first batch.

“Vadim” doesn’t have that, regardless of his military rank. But even Russian media loyal to the regime are now reporting that the recruitment office is recruiting people far beyond the alleged criteria.

– Sent forward without training

There is a shortage of junior officers like “Vadim” on the ground in Ukraineand anyone under 50 with this rating was at risk of being sent to the fire during the first wave of mobilization.

“Vadim” is a man in his 30s. That’s not his real name.

Dagbladet knows his identity, but for security reasons cannot explain further about him.

Tense

He described the current situation in Russia as very tense.

The rank of lieutenant was not something he earned for fighting. Instead, it was in the hopes of avoiding being part of a Russian military operation.

He has attended what is called a military faculty, the type of education where you receive military training during your civilian academic education. After two and a half years of military training in addition to studies, you go into the field for a month.

Shooting at the recruitment office in Russia

Upon graduation, one receives a military rank, and can choose between continuing into the military or not.

– When I was studying at university, this was the best way to never end up in a real military environment, and instead have a quiet life as a backup, says “Vadim”, and adds:

– What an irony. It turned out to be a ticket to hell, the wolf passed by, said “Vadim”.

Planning border closure

He is currently looking for a job in a country outside of Russia, but hasn’t found one yet.

At the same time, according to the independent newspaper Meduza, Russian authorities plan to close the border to all men of combat age in no time.

– Putin can be tempted

This is the date that the alleged referendum in the occupied parts of the Ukrainian districts of Zaporizhzhya, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk will take place.

– I need more time to gather my things and plan my next move, he said.

Many of those who fled Russia at the start of the war were openly rebels who have been demonstrating against the Putin regime for several years.

– Ordinary man

“Vadim” himself wouldn’t describe himself as a rebellious person. When war broke out in the Donbas in 2014, he felt all sad, but at the same time far from where he lived.

– I’m a completely ordinary guy who doesn’t appear on the radar. This is politics. But politics arose in the living room of every Russian family. Mothers must send their sons to war, wives must send their husbands. Now it concerns everyone in Russia, he said.

The situation in Ukraine has been tense since war broke out in the east of the country in 2014. “Vadim” himself visited the country after this.

– I was in Kyiv in 2016. Nobody hated me then. Everyone was nice and welcomed me. “Ukrainian people I have met understand that this is a major political war, not a war for ordinary people,” he said.

– Yesterday I called a friend from the military faculty. He supported Putin and the war, and said he would go there to ensure Russia’s victory. But most of us Russians don’t believe in Russia’s victory in Ukraine.

visa refusal

Like a number of Russians Dagbladet has spoken to in recent days, he is highly critical of the decisions of Finland, Poland and the Baltic states to deny entry to Russians.

– They have betrayed the trust of ordinary Russians, and closed the door to all those who would be killed in a war they did not choose, he said.

He believes this decision only feeds Putin’s narrative.

– It only makes more people believe Putin’s propaganda that the West hates Russia and is working against us as a people, said “Vadim”.