The war against Ukraine came as a shock for most Russians, even the most engaged in politics did not think it would go that far. As a result of political upheaval, an exodus of Russians from the country has begun to be observed. 

Which social class do the majority of Russian emigrants belong to? What professional sectors do they come from? What countries did they choose to move to and why? Where have Russian emigrants faced discrimination? What are the political attitudes of most emigrants and what political activities abroad do they pursue? What is their influence on those who stayed in Russia?

A number of researchers, namely Veronica Kostenko, Emil Kamalov, Ivetta Sergeeva and Margarita Zavadskaya have tried to answer these and other questions in their analytical work based on an original survey of people who left Russia after February 24, 2022.