South Korea records record number of Russians seeking asylum
South Korean authorities say Russian refugee applications climbed fivefold last year, making them the largest group requesting asylum.
The Korean Immigration Service said this month that 5,750 Russians requested refuge in South Korea in 2023. Five times the 1,038 asylum seekers in 2022 and higher than Russian asylum applications between 1994 and 2019.
The Immigration Service reported the most asylum petitions in eight years last year. Kazakhstan, China, and Malaysia sent the most refugees after Russia.
Also this year, Russians sought refuge the most in January.
Religious persecution was the main reason asylum seekers sought asylum, followed by political persecution. Other variables were social, ethnic, and nationality prejudice.
Service didn’t explain Russian asylum seekers’ arguments.
Asylum petitions are strictly regulated in South Korea.
In 30 years, South Korea has accepted 4,052 refugees from over 103,000 asylum claims, according to study.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of Russians have fled abroad, many to evade military conscription.
Five Russian men escaping Moscow’s war conscription order were delayed at Incheon International Airport near Seoul in 2022.
They were stranded at the airport when the South Korean Justice Ministry dismissed their refugee petitions. Fearful of returning to Russia, they slept at the terminal for five months, eating South Korean immigration agency meals. Early 2023, two guys exited the airport.
The guys told a local news network they changed their minds about going to Kazakhstan after learning it deported Russian migrants.
After Moscow instituted the military conscription in September 2022, US border officials spotted more Russians.
US Customs and Border Protection reported 22,000 Russian attempts to enter the US over the southern border from October 2022 to February 2023.
