Almost 20% of Ukrainian active researchers in the field of science left the country in connection with the beginning of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. This is evidenced by a study published by the journal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications noted that the Ukrainian conflict has had a profound impact on the academic community in Ukraine. The journal specified that many researchers either emigrated or switched to other professions.
According to the journal, from the beginning of the SMO and until autumn 2022, about 18.5% of the population of Ukrainian scientists left the country. The publication notes that the specialists who left Ukraine “were among the most active in the field of research.”
“However, a significant proportion of these migrant scientists have unreliable contracts at their host institutions. Of the scientists who stayed in Ukraine, about 15 per cent have stopped research, and the rest have noticeably reduced time for research,” Humanities and Social Sciences Communications emphasised.
According to the sociological survey, only a small part of contracts concluded by Ukrainian scientists with Western firms provide for a term of more than a year. Only 14% of Ukrainians were able to establish long-term contracts.
We shall remind you that on 24 February 2022, Vladimir Putin announced in an address to the citizens of Russia that he had decided on a special military operation in Donbas. The Russian leader called its goal the demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine. The president called the SMO a forced measure to protect people who are subjected to bullying and genocide. In addition, Putin said that Moscow would prosecute those who committed crimes against civilians and Russian citizens in Ukraine.