Tens of thousands of people are leaving Russia, even with few routes out of the country
CBC
The day that Russia's military began launching strikes across Ukraine, Mikhail Grinberg and his wife, Paulina, knew they had to leave. The only question was should they go immediately and just take their passports, or did they have time to pack clothes?
They bought tickets for the next day, Feb. 25, filled some suitcases and flew from Moscow to Riga, the capital of Latvia.
"I definitely want a better future for my family, definitely," said 35-year-old Mikhail, who works as a product manager for the Russian technology company Yandex. "But also, it's avoiding this feeling of disgust."
On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about purifying Russian society from "traitors" whose minds are aligned with the West, but tens of thousands of people living in Russia have already made the choice to leave.
Some fear the further isolation of Russia through economic sanctions, which could lead to food and medicine shortages, but others, like the Grinbergs, say they can't stomach living in the country any longer.
With European airspace closed, crossing Russia's border with Finland, Estonia or Latvia are among the only routes out of the country, as long as travellers have the necessary visas.
The Grinbergs headed to Latvia, where more than one-third of the population speaks Russian as their first language, because Paulina's relatives live in a community northeast of Riga.
Mikhail had left Russia before. He studied English in Ukraine, and the couple previously lived in the U.K., which is where their two-year-old son, Leo, was born.
They decided to return to Moscow because Mikhail was offered his "dream job" helping to design Yandex's English-language learning platform.
When the Grinbergs woke up and heard the news of the invasion on Feb. 24, they wanted to leave as soon as they could, but even after they left, guilt followed them.
Paulina, 37, burst into tears as she spoke about not being able to sleep at night because she keeps picturing children who have been killed in Ukraine.
"It is so hard for me to concentrate because all I can think of is those pictures that speak to me directly," she said.
As a student in Russia, Mikhail frequently took part in anti-government protests, but he stopped when it became too dangerous.
"I don't have enough courage to risk a prison sentence per se, but I can still do certain things," he said. "I can stop paying tax in Russia."
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