The Russian invasion of Ukraine took everyone by surprise. Including citizens of other countries who were currently in one of the two countries for study or work reasons. Among them there are also some Italian university students who, in recent months, were participating in Erasmus or other similar exchange programs. Who suddenly found themselves having to deal with managing a problem bigger than their own. Because, although the calls of the various projects expressly provide for the possibility of interrupting the experience for reasons of “force majeure”, the speed with which the situation has degenerated has prevented them from planning an easy return home.
The bad experience of our compatriots in Russia
In recent days there have been news of Erasmus students blocked in Russia: after the four students of the Luiss of Rome stopped in Moscow who, later, managed to reach Estonia and then Italy, two other students of the University of Sassari had a hard time leaving St. Petersburg. The young women took part in the Ulysses project, a mobility program that led them to study in the Russian city, but the adventure soon turned into a nightmare, when on February 24, Russian troops invaded Ukraine and the country. it has remained virtually isolated from the rest of Europe due to the cutting of connections. After four days of canceled flights and refused passports, they turned to the foreign ministry, which was unable to help them. On the advice of a friend, the two then set off for Istanbul from where they returned to Italy.
Russian and Ukrainian students on Erasmus in Italy: what happens now?
The same, of course, also applies to Russian and Ukrainian students hosted by Italian universities. They, on the other hand, are at a crossroads: to return to their homeland or try to extend their stay to avoid experiencing the conflict from within? In the meantime, the solidarity of the various structures was not delayed. Among others, the Sapienza University of Rome intervened in their favor by activating the institutional channels to guarantee the permanence of five Ukrainian students who would soon have to finish Erasmus in the capital. The goal is to finance, through university funds, room and board for the group of young people who would otherwise be forced to return to their country in one of the darkest and most dangerous moments in its history. The initiative is part of the same perspective as the fundraising, already launched by the university last summer for Afghan students and students in Kabul.
How many Italian students were on Erasmus when the war broke out?
But how many are these guys to whom the war has put a spanner in the works. To understand this, the Skuola.net portal consulted Indire, the Institute which, among other things, manages Erasmus and other student mobility programs. According to the data available to them, updated as of March 1, in fact, the Italian girls and boys currently (or at least at the outbreak of the war) in Erasmus in Russia would be 12, while it would seem that there are no compatriots who are in Ukraine for reasons of study. At the same time, there are 39 Erasmus students in Italy from Ukraine and 52 from Russia.
War in Ukraine, which must do those who are on Erasmus in the conflict zones
Who would like to escape and who would like to return, then. The national Erasmus + agency Indire, through its web portal, recently published a note in which it specifies that all students engaged in Erasmus, connected in some way to the Ukrainian situation, and more generally connected to dangerous situations, will be able to invoke the cause of “force majeure”, interrupt the journey and return to their country. This applies to both incoming and outgoing of course. As, in fact, Indire itself makes known with a note: “As in any situation of serious emergency and as provided for by the Program Guide and the agreement, the cause of force majeure may be invoked for interruptions or cancellations of Erasmus + project activities related to the situation in Ukraine. The conditions can be applied to both outgoing and incoming mobility, subject to compliance with the general legal framework that applies to Erasmus +. “
But what should people who are somehow stuck in the conflict do? For those who are abroad, the indications are clear: “We remind you that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation publishes and constantly updates the safety information for fellow countrymen who are or intend to travel abroad. We therefore recommend that you constantly follow the updates of the Traveling Safe portal, in the tabs dedicated to the individual countries (Ukraine and Russia), to follow the instructions of the Italian Embassies in Moscow and Kiev reported on their respective websites and – for those in the area – to register, if not yet done, on the Where we are in the world website “.