[tlozo]

Western sanctions, launched in response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February, have wounded Russia’s long-term economic prospects. Blocking the world’s ninth-largest economy from accessing foreign technology and expertise has cut its growth potential by as much as half, forecasts suggest. Output of oil and gas, the lifeblood of the Russian economy, is about 3% lower than it was before the invasion and may fall further once European embargoes come into effect at the turn of the year. In the first six months of the war somewhere in the region of 250,000 to 500,000 Russians fled the country, reckons Liam Peach of Capital Economics, a consultancy. Lots were highly educated and well paid.

[gleeaikin]

Don’t the 1/4 to 1/2 million mostly educated Russians you mentioned represent the ones who left before the new mobilization. It has been anywhere from 500 to 800 thousand more since then.