'My village is deserted' How war is emptying rural Russia

Every few months, Alina makes the long journey from the regional capital, Syktyvkar, back to her home village of Kerchomya to visit her family. Each time, she says, the streets feel a little emptier.

- Pjotr Sauer

Kerchomya, a remote settlement of just over 700 people in the Komi Republic in Russia’s northwest, was never a bustling place. Wooden houses line its unpaved roads and in winter the single route in and out can become nearly impassable.

But after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, residents say the village began to feel different. “When I go out for a walk now, I barely run into anyone,” Alina said. “Over the past four years, my village has become deserted. The men are all fighting in Ukraine.”

From the start of the war, the Kremlin has sought to insulate Moscow and St Petersburg from its visible costs, keeping life in urban centres relatively undisturbed.

But in rural places such as Kerchomya, the consequences are harder to conceal. Interviews conducted by phone and text with more than a dozen current and former residents describe a place steadily reshaped by the war. Several spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons, and in some cases only first names have been used or changed.

Fifty-six men from Kerchomya have gone to fight in Ukraine, nearly 1,500 miles from home, according to the village head, Olga Bulysheva. That is about a third of all working-age men. Twelve have been killed, she added. Several more are believed to be missing.

Like many villages in the Komi region, Kerchomya has long depended on small-scale farming and a handful of public-sector jobs. Even before the invasion of Ukraine, younger people were leaving for larger cities, while others struggled with unemployment and alcoholism.

Now, local people say, positions on farms, at the post office or at the recently opened small bread factory are difficult to fill.

“Everyone knows everyone here, and every pair of hands is needed,” said Vladimir, whose nephew signed a contract and left for the front. “If you lose one or two men, you feel it straight away. The village starts to thin out.”