Men aged 18–22 are leaving Ukraine en masse: how many have already left?
фото: ДПСУ
After the Ukrainian government allowed men aged 18–22 to travel abroad on August 28, there has been a noticeable increase in the flow of young citizens to European countries. This is especially noticeable in the Polish direction, where the number of departures increased more than 10 times in the first week after the changes came into effect.
This is stated in the material of Hromadske.
Although the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine does not keep separate statistics for this age group, Polish border guards have more accurate figures. According to their data, 6,100 Ukrainian men aged 18–22 arrived in the Podkarpacie Voivodeship between August 28 and September 3. For comparison, the previous week this figure was only 500. A similar trend was recorded in the Lublin Voivodeship, where the number of young Ukrainian men crossing the border increased from 461 to 4,605 per week.
In total, at least 10,705 Ukrainian men aged 18–22 left Poland through these two regions alone during the week. There was also movement in the opposite direction, but the net outflow during this period amounted to 7,404 people.
The State Statistics Service of Ukraine notes that they are not observing a mass wave of departure, and warns against manipulations that could be used as part of Russia’s information campaign. At the same time, Polish statistics demonstrate a significant increase in youth mobility after the adoption of the Ukrainian government’s resolution.
Some of those leaving use Poland only as a transit country. For example, some Ukrainian IT workers cross the Polish border to Georgia, where the cost of living is lower, conditions for remote work are convenient, and there are no restrictions on stay.
According to some analysts, the departure of young men is indeed taking place, although it is not always simultaneous or organized. A study conducted by HRD-club showed that over 70% of surveyed labor specialists confirmed a significant departure of this category of workers from jobs in various industries.
Experts also point out that young people aged 18–22 often have higher mobility and are less burdened by family or financial obligations, so it is this age group that responds quickly to changes in legislation.
Some men leave the country without clear plans for study or employment abroad — the main motive, according to some experts, is to avoid mobilization and a desire to temporarily escape the realities of war.
As a reminder, from August 28 , men aged 18 to 22 inclusive have been granted the right to travel outside Ukraine during martial law . State Border Service spokesman Andriy Demchenko explained what documents you need to have with you, how the crossing is done at crossing points, and whether there is any excitement among this category of citizens.
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