Following Ukraine’s separation from the Soviet Union, over 250 thousand Jews emigrated to Israel during the 1990s. They represented about 5% of Israel’s total population of ~5 million at the time. According to the European Jewish Congress, about 400,000 Jews still live in Ukraine.
Emigration continues, though at lower levels. Many families and friends still keep in contact with each other. In a traditionally tight-knit community, it’s natural to work together, too.
While Ukraine has since moved to Ukrainian as its official language, most still speak or at least easily understand Russian. Presently, with a population of about 9 million, around 1.5 million or 17% of Israeli’s speak Russian. As English is the closest thing to a “universal programming language” – and roughly 7 out of 8 Israeli’s have a high level of English fluency. Ukrainian developers are not far behind on this score, with ~45% having high-intermediate to advanced levels of fluency in English, while another third have at least intermediate proficiency.
Software’s complex and project requirements involve detailed specifications, but you can be assured your Ukrainian developers will understand precisely what you need. A simple point of fact is that developers who are not satisfactorily proficient in English are typically limited to working with local companies. Language proficiencies are an integral part of the skill matching and vetting conducted by any IT outsourcing agency.