From: Jason Hay Smart — Why are the architects of Russia’s war secretly buying tickets out? A reported list has surfaced identifying two hundred and four high-level Russian officials currently securing citizenship in Serbia. These are not ordinary tourists; the names include directors of state railways and key avionics engineers like Viktor Shendrik and Konstantin Ektov. They are utilizing a specific legal loophole in Belgrade known as “Article 19” to bypass European travel restrictions. This movement signals a massive shift in capital flight and a quiet vote of no confidence from the technocratic elite.
In this investigation, we map the entire network, exposing how the “Article 19” mechanism fast-tracks EU access and how stolen Black Sea grain funds are financing these “Golden Visas.” We analyze why the “Oprichnina” effect is forcing these figures to flee the very system they built, connecting the dots between defense industry bottlenecks, the internal crackdown, and the desperate scramble for offshore protection. This is not just a story about passports; it is a real-time look at the fracturing of the Russian interior.
Voice of Ukraine 