The number of Ukrainians who have fled their homes since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine earlier this year has reached 14 million, according to the most recent United Nations data.
Addressing the UN Security Council this week, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi described the mass exodus of refugees that began on February 24 as “the fastest and largest displacement observed in decades. “
He warned that with “one of the harshest winters in the world” approaching, Ukrainians were about to face “extremely difficult circumstances” and that more assistance was needed.
“Humanitarian organizations have dramatically intensified their reaction, but much remains to be done, starting with ending this senseless war,” the UN refugee leader said. “Unfortunately, we see the opposite, and the destruction caused by movements in civilian infrastructure, which is as we speak, temporarily makes the humanitarian reaction seem like a drop in the ocean of wishes,” he added.
As of 1 November, 7,785,514 Ukrainian refugees had fled their country and were registered in Europe. Poland and Germany took in the maximum number of refugees, more than one million each, followed by the Czech Republic, which took in 455,731. Other countries that have welcomed significant numbers of Ukrainians include the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Turkey, Italy and Spain, which have taken in between 100,000 and 300,000 refugees each.
Neighbouring countries such as Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Moldova, all components of the UN’s Regional Refugee Response Plan, as well as Poland, have also hosted tens of thousands of refugees.
During his speech, Grandi praised the European Union’s reaction to the crisis and said that “we have noticed an open, well-managed and above all shared refugee reaction that has belied many repeated claims through some politicians: that Europe is full; whereas relocation is impossible; that there is no public aid for refugees.
In the spring, Biden’s leadership announced a personal sponsorship program to welcome up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees to the United States. In just over 4 months after the program began, 50,832 Ukrainians had arrived in the United States on initiative, CBS News reported. From March through September, U. S. Customs and Border Protection agents have been able to take office. UU. se met with more than 91,000 Ukrainians along the U. S. -Mexico border. USA and Mexico.
In addition to those who left the war-torn country, more than 6. 9 million people are believed to have been displaced within Ukraine, according to the UN refugee agency.
Another 2. 8 million refugees were registered crossing the border into Russia. In a recent investigation into the Ukrainian refugee crisis, Erol Yayboke said some of those Ukrainian refugees “claim to have crossed Russia voluntarily to, despite everything, succeed in the European Union. “. Yayboke is director and principal investigator of the frailty and mobility task at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D. C. , think tank. occupied regions while Moscow tried to rid eastern Ukraine of other sympathetic people in Kyiv. “
The allegations were raised at a UN Security Council assembly in September through Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the United Nations. to 1. 6 million Ukrainians. Russia, however, has denied the allegations.
A report released last week through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) provided a review of the profiles, wishes and intentions of some of the Ukrainian refugees in Europe. With the assistance of partners in Belarus, Bulgaria, Hungary and other European countries. , UNHCR conducted more than 34,000 interviews between May and September 2022 on crossing issues, shipping centres, reception and transit centres, as well as assistance issues in major cities, the agency says.
According to the report, most Ukrainian refugees are women who have traveled with their young or elderly parents. This is partly because men between the ages of 18 and 60 eligible to serve in the military were barred from leaving the country and invited to sign up for the fight.
Refugees surveyed had a high level of schooling with 46% with a university degree or higher, and 29% with vocational training. They also had varied professional experience, particularly in trade-related sectors.
In terms of accommodation, the majority of respondents, 56%, were accommodated in accommodation or rented, while 29% remained accommodated in collective sites, planned sites and reception or transit centres. The remaining 12% had relatives in the host countries.
The refugees’ 3 most sensible urgent wishes were money, employment, and housing, and the most common was for them to seek information about cash assistance and painting opportunities, followed by medical care and legal status.
Finally, according to the report, the majority of respondents expressed a desire to stay in the host country in the short or long term for security reasons.
Given the “likely extended nature of the military situation,” Grandi said his company is preparing for additional population movements in and out of Ukraine. He also drew attention to other emergencies occurring around the world.
“It’s not just Ukraine where the fighting has driven other people from their homes. In the past 12 months alone, UNHCR has responded to 37 emergencies around the world. Thirty-seven. However, other crises fail to capture the same foreign attention, outrage, resources, action,” he said.
This content is not available due to your privacy preferences.
This content is not available due to your privacy preferences.
This content is not available due to your privacy preferences.
This content is not available due to your privacy preferences.