ISTANBUL — Turkey, where Russians can travel visa-free and obtain a short-term residency, has been one of the top runaway destinations for those fleeing Russia since the start of Moscow's war in Ukraine last year — until recently.
Eva Rapoport, coordinator of the Istanbul branch of the Ark, a global crowdfunding charity organization that provides temporary shelter, language courses and immigration advice to Russians in exile, said that there are more Russians now who were unable to obtain “ikamet" (short-term residency) than those who did obtain the permit.
