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Armenia became independent as a result of the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, accompanied by a number of severe economic and political crises. As with many other former Soviet republics, it was exposed to numerous socio-economic problems related to the decline in industry and the fundamental structural shifts in the economy during the transition period in the post-Soviet era. Moreover, the country faced additional difficulties as a result of a devastating earthquake and the economic blockade due to ethnic conflicts in the region. From 1990 until 2005 it is estimated that between 700,000 to 1,300,000 Armenians left their homeland and settled abroad. Unlike the emigration in the pre-transition period, when migration decisions were well thought out, migration during the transition period was an immediate response to rapidly deteriorating socio-economic and political realities. Only a minority of Armenian migrants choose European countries as a destination, while the absolute majority go to Russia. This is most probably due to the existing barriers and the absence of mechanisms facilitating migration from Armenia to Europe rather than the unattractiveness of these destinations.
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