The Bell: 650,000 people have left Russia permanently since the invasion of Ukraine

At least 650,000 Russian citizens have left Russia for good since the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to research published on Tuesday carried out by independent news outlet The Bell.

The country to receive the largest number of Russian emigrées in total was Armenia, the investigation found, with some 110,000 Russians choosing to resettle in the country, which is one of the few that doesn’t require Russian passport holders to have a visa.

Kazakhstan and Israel both came a close second, having received around 80,000 Russian migrants each. Fourth place was taken by Georgia, which received 73,500 Russians, while the United States was fifth, with 48,000.

In Europe, Germany was the most popular destination, with about 36,000 Russians moving to the country. Serbia came a close second, however, receiving about 30,000 Russians. In total, The Bell’s research identified an extra 150,000 Russians who fled the country than was previously known about.

While some who left Russia in 2022 have now returned home despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, the Russian authorities have never disclosed the total number of citizens who left the country for good.

In recent months, Norway and Finland have both moved to restrict non-essential travel by Russian citizens. Moreover, foreign travel has become increasingly difficult for Russian passport holders as sanctions have driven up costs and visas have become increasingly hard to obtain.