This paper examines the experiences of Russian queer migrants who fled to Serbia and Germany following Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in February 2022. Drawing on in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted in 2025, it examines how queer individuals negotiate displacement amid war, authoritarianism, and intensifying repression in Russia.
For many participants, the decision to flee was shaped by overlapping fears: the threat of military mobilization and conscription into a war they opposed, and the escalating crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights that has intensified under wartime masculinist nationalism. The paper addresses the specific impacts of war, mobilisation and repression on queer Russian citizens in exile, with particular attention to trans and genderqueer perspectives and the particular risks mobilisation might pose for these individuals.
By comparing Serbia and Germany, the analysis also highlights how local migration regimes, legal statuses, and queer infrastructures differently shape migrant experiences. While both countries provide relative safety compared to Russia, they differ significantly in terms of LGBTQ+ rights and societal acceptance of queer people.
The paper puts into focus how queer Russian migrants (re)construct belonging in exile in these two contexts. Through informal networks, activist initiatives and online communities, participants cultivate alternative spaces of care and solidarity that transcend national boundaries.
Ultimately the paper contributes to emerging scholarship on queer displacement in the context of the war in Ukraine. By analysing how migrants negotiate safety, identity and recognition, across different host contexts, it offers a grounded understanding of how queer lives are reshaped by war and authoritarianism in contemporary Europe.
