It’s not a question of whether people want to leave Russia, Oleg Itskhoki, an economics professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Insider. …
It’s not a question of whether people want to leave Russia, Oleg Itskhoki, an economics professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Insider. It’s a matter of when they will — and whether they can. «People want to leave in mass quantities now, but there are severe restrictions on mobility as a result of sanctions,» he said, citing «closed embassies, closed skies for flying.» «So, in fact, fewer people will be able to leave even if more people are trying harder to leave now,» he added. «This is particularly relevant for educated, informed people.» Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week, Western countries enacted a wave of sanctions that left Russia isolated and financially restricted. Foreign governments have even left Russians physically isolated: At least 33 foreign airlines have stopped flying to Russia, and most European countries have prohibited Russian planes from entering their airspace. That’s as thousands of Russians have fled the country in the past week, The Telegraph reported. Most of the people leaving are those who can afford to, including Russia’s well-educated urban middle class. But the country has barred its citizens from leaving with more than $10,000 in tow, in an attempt to keep them — and their money — homebound. It’s a problem that’s plagued Russia for years: The country’s «brain drain» is its mass emigration of highly trained and highly educated citizens to new regions, particularly Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, and the US.
