Even the return of all Ukrainians who have gone abroad because of the war will not be able to stop depopulation in Ukraine. This was stated by Ella Libanova, Director of the Ptukha Institute for Demography and Social Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, during the discussion ‘Ukrainian Society in the Fourth Year of the Great War’.
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According to her, the country’s demographic growth potential has now been completely exhausted. The only way to increase the population is to attract migrants from other countries. However, according to Libanova, she is not sure that Ukrainian society is ready for such a step.
The scholar emphasised that, with the exception of Zakarpattia and part of Odesa regions, Ukrainians mostly have no experience of living in multi-ethnic societies. She also added that although Ukrainians are a tolerant nation, they are not as open to migrants as, for example, Europeans.
Libanova believes that Ukrainians are not currently ready to live alongside a large number of migrants who differ significantly from them in terms of lifestyle and religion. And this, in her opinion, is a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
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