Recently, due to the events in Israel and Gaza, tensions between Ukraine and the Middle East have increased significantly. Find out who came to Ukraine in 2023, from which Middle Eastern countries, and why

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The invasion of Israel by Hamas militants has sparked heated debate in the world. Moreover, the split between the West and the Global South has become quite noticeable, which inevitably affected Ukraine and the level of attention to the russian-Ukrainian war. The international community's attention is now focused on the situation in Gaza, and Middle Eastern countries are calling for rallies in support of the Palestinians. 

At the same time, Ukraine has found itself on the other side of the barricades, as it sided with Israel after the Hamas invasion, which has caused relations between Ukraine and the Middle East to cool significantly, despite the fact that for almost two years the Ukrainian government has been fighting for their favor. 

However, experts point out that the tension is mostly not due to a direct conflict of interest between the countries, but to the fact that the Arab world is much more interested and concerned about events in Israel, as the war in Ukraine does not affect their ideology at all.

At the same time, almost 68 thousand foreigners from the Middle East visited Ukraine in the first half of 2023, which is more than 5% of the total number of foreigners who entered Ukraine from January to August 2023.

The article below describes which countries of the Middle East foreigners came to Ukraine most often and for what purpose.

How many foreigners visited Ukraine and from which Middle Eastern countries?

According to official data provided by the administration of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine at the request of Visit Ukraine, 67,997 foreigners from the Middle East entered Ukraine in the first half of 2023. 

The ranking of the Middle Eastern countries from which foreigners most often came to Ukraine is as follows:

1. Turkey - 30,214 foreigners

2. Israel - 20,333 foreigners

3. Syria - 9,204 foreigners

4. Egypt - 3,258 foreigners

5. Cyprus - 2 479 foreigners

6. Iraq - 601 foreigners

7. Lebanon - 574 foreigners

8. Jordan - 456 foreigners

9. Iran - 367 foreigners

10. Palestine - 182 foreigners

11. Saudi Arabia - 99 foreigners

12. Yemen - 76 foreigners

13. Qatar - 67 foreigners

14. United Arab Emirates (UAE) - 38 foreigners

15. Bahrain - 28 foreigners

16. Kuwait - 18 foreigners

17. Oman - 3 foreigners

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Why do foreigners from the Middle East come to Ukraine?

According to the data obtained from the State Border Guard Service, the vast majority of foreigners entered Ukraine for private purposes, but some of them were vehicle service personnel, and a small percentage were transiting the country. Thus:

● private purpose - 42,978 foreigners;

● transport service personnel - 24,082 foreigners

● transit through Ukraine - 937 foreigners.

It is currently unknown which part of the foreigners who entered Ukraine for private purposes left the country and which part received a residence permit due to the need to stay. However, the grounds for staying in Ukraine may include work-related matters, direct employment or training, as well as joining the International Legion.

How to get to Ukraine during the war?

Due to the fact that the skies over Ukraine remain closed, the logistical route is somewhat complicated, but most foreigners choose a combined travel option with two or more modes of transportation in order to get to Ukraine as quickly as possible.

The most popular option is to fly to one of the airports located near the Ukrainian border and then transfer to a train or bus going directly to Ukraine.

On our website you can find the most convenient routes to Ukraine from many countries. If you're looking for a quick and easy way to get to Ukraine, choose the country you need and follow the link.

How to get to Ukraine from:

USA ● Canada ● Poland ● Germany ● Slovakia ● Hungary ● Italy ● France ● Netherlands ● Czech Republic ● Lithuania ● Switzerland ● Sweden ● Turkey ● Austria ● Denmark ● Portugal ● Georgia ● Bulgaria ● India ● Greece ● Croatia ● Estonia ● Finland ● Latvia ● Belgium ● Slovenia ● Moldova ● Ireland ● Norway ● Spain ● russia ●  United Kingdom ● Romania ● Armenia

Train, bus and plane tickets to Ukraine and between cities around the world are available here.

Please note! To enter the territory of Ukraine, a foreigner must have proper health insurance. We recommend choosing an insurance policy with military risk coverage, which covers not only basic medical services and treatment, but also accidents related to military operations. You can purchase such insurance from trusted and reliable insurance agents on the Visit Ukraine website. 

We remind you! Individual independent travel is becoming more and more popular among travelers every year. Read how to organize an individual trip to Ukraine in times of war and what to pay special attention to when planning in our previous article.

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