More than 21,000 Russians have sought asylum in the United States at the US’s southern border with Mexico since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, an increase of nearly 4,500% since 2020, the New York Times reports.
The Times reports that most of the Russians seeking asylum in the United States are anti-war protesters or people who are fleeing likely conscription. The Times story centers on two young doctors, both anti-war activists in Russia, who flew to Mexico planning to seek asylum in the US. They turned themselves in at a border port-of-entry, and spent the next six months in separate migrant detention facilities. They were released when they each posted $15,000 bonds.
The US had seen a boost in migrants and asylum seekers from Russia over the last two years as the Kremlin has cracked down on the LGBTQ community, political activists and even religious groups like the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Unrest with the Putin regime has been simmering for years, and the poorly-run invasion of Ukraine, with the subsequent mandatory conscription of tens of thousands of people to fight at the front.