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South Korea sees surge in Russians seeking asylum as Ukraine war grinds on
- The number of Russian nationals submitting refugee application in South Korea last year jumped fivefold to more than 5,000
- Many asylum seekers cited ‘political opinions’ as their primary reason and must contend with South Korea’s low approval rate for refugee status
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South Korea is experiencing a dramatic surge in asylum seekers from Russia, according to a recent government report.
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In 2023, more than 5,000 Russian nationals submitted refugee applications, a fivefold increase from the previous year’s total of 1,038, said the report cited in the Korea Herald.
This surge nearly matches the total number of Russian asylum seekers recorded over 26 years, from 1994 to 2019.
Russian asylum seekers are fleeing Russia amid the war against Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin’s military mobilisation of 300,000 individuals in September 2022 pushed many Russian men to avoid conscription by seeking refuge abroad.
Up to 1 million Russians had left the country, an Economist report stated in August 2023.
In February 2023, Politico reported that two Russian citizens who had fled to evade conscription had been stranded at Incheon International Airport near Seoul since October.
The men were granted the opportunity to enter South Korea, but the asylum-seeking process itself could take years, Agence France-Presse reported at the time.
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