Around 70,000 migrants arrived from Morocco in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta over the summer. The arrivals prompted European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to urge tougher action on illegal migration and stronger protection for the EU’s external borders. In a letter to all 27 EU leaders, she called for an emergency response framework for cases where migration is weaponized, expanded powers for Frontex and a higher deportation rate.
The EU Border Response
“We must prevent such threats and make clear that we will never compromise the protection of our external borders: no state or non-state actor will be allowed to exploit our rules or our values to destabilise the Union,” von der Leyen wrote. Her letter was intended to inform a migration discussion scheduled for Friday, the second day of the European Council summit.
Her proposals focus on the EU’s external borders and illegal migration. Separately, the article describes Russian citizens seeking accommodation in Georgia, Armenia and Belarus amid fears of another mobilisation for Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. The figures cover different circumstances and different routes of entry and residence.
Visa-Free Stays and Rising Rents
Rents in Georgia and Armenia rose 20–30% year on year over the summer as Russians sought accommodation in the former Soviet republics, where they can stay without a visa. Georgia lets Russian citizens remain for up to 360 days without a visa; a short trip to a neighbouring country resets that period. Tens of thousands of Russians now live in Georgia.
In Yerevan, monthly rent for a two-room flat reached €800–900 in August, up 23.5% from a year earlier. Armenia lets Russian citizens enter without a visa and stay for up to 180 days per year. Russians and Armenians who had lived in Russia and want to avoid mobilisation have concentrated mainly in Yerevan.
Georgia’s rents have fallen from their summer peak and broadly stabilised after climbing 60–70% in 2022–2023. Standard housing in Tbilisi rents for €450–730 a month, while larger or higher-end apartments cost €910–2,700 or more. According to the National Statistics Office, Georgia’s average nominal monthly wage is around 2,165 lari, or roughly €750.
In August, average flat prices in apartment blocks in Yerevan rose 2.9% from July and 23.5% year on year, the Cadastre Committee said. The 10% tax required when people register lease contracts with the Cadastre typically falls on tenants. Armenia’s average nominal monthly wage is 320,763 dram (€790), with substantially higher pay in sectors including IT, finance and mining.
Property Demand Across the Region
Russian nationals account for around 72% of property transactions by foreign nationals in Armenia. Foreign citizens took part in 506 purchase-and-sale transactions nationwide in August, making up 7.6% of all deals; 70.2% of those purchases, or 177 properties, were in Yerevan.
In Georgia, Russians accounted for more than 55% of foreign-buyer property transactions in 2023, but their share has since fallen by a third. Georgians made up 76% of transactions in Tbilisi’s primary housing market in 2026, according to investment bank Galt & Taggart; Israeli buyers accounted for 11% and Russians 3%. Demand is more diversified in Batumi.
Belarus, too, drew Russians, first as a transit point and later as a place to stay. After partial mobilisation was announced in September 2022, demand for short- and medium-term rentals surged in Minsk and border cities including Brest and Gomel. Russian citizens can remain without registration for up to 90 days; a long-term rental contract qualifies them for a temporary residence permit. According to the National Cadastral Agency, Russian buyers now account for more than 10% of property transactions in Belarus, up from 2% a year earlier. Minsk housing prices per square metre rose 25.6% over the year.