One of the most significant changes from last year is “that people are more tired,” says Billing. Although “the resilience for which Ukrainians are known throughout the world” still exists, two years of war have taken their toll. “No one knows when and how the war will end. And it’s difficult to live with this uncertainty.”
War is definitely not a sprint, not even a marathon, says the UNHCR representative who has been stationed in Ukraine for almost three years. It can be better compared to an ultramarathon, but the end of which is not in sight. “When you reach the finish line, you don’t know if you’re going to add another ten kilometers. (…) And you can’t know when the next aid station arrives where they’ll give you a drink and a banana. Mentally adjusting to this is incredibly challenging.”
Those affected are often elderly people, war widows and people with war disabilities. “And they also have to run. You can't just sit there and say, 'Okay, I'll wait until it's over and then I'll figure out what to do next.'”
UNHCR/Elisabeth Arnsdorf Haslund Billing (far right) checks the targeted use of UNHCR aid in frontline areas
Support is waning
“There is less support,” says Billing, one of the other changes in the second year of the war. The escalation in the Middle East, for example, “has had a major impact on the world, which apparently can only focus on one crisis at a time”. In 2022, many warned against focusing only on Ukraine and forgetting other sources of conflict. “Two years later we say: let’s not forget Ukraine!”
debate
How much is Ukraine worth to the West?
The people of Ukraine would closely monitor support from the international community, for example, how the decision-making process regarding further military aid in the US is going. The feeling of not being alone gives many people the impetus to move forward.
Normality in the abnormal
Cheap describes everyday life in Kiev this way: “If there was no air alarm, we would almost think there was no war in this country,” which is probably due to human adaptability. “But at the same time you realize how abnormal it is to live in a war.”
UNHCR/Elisabeth Arnsdorf Haslund The Kharkiv city administration has established a number of schools in the metro system
In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, underground schools have been built so that children can come together again instead of learning online. “In a way it’s really cool, the kids are happy there. On the other hand, it is extremely sad to see how they have to study underground, without daylight, to avoid the risk of being killed.”
Many of the children are among the estimated four million internally displaced people in Ukraine. People had to leave all their possessions behind and start a new existence. It's not just a financial burden, Billing says. The fact that displaced people do not know whether their new environment, their new jobs are permanent or whether it will be possible to return is psychologically difficult to face.
UNHCR/Diana Zeyneb Alhindawi The devastation did not diminish in the second year of war, on the contrary
Furthermore, the war is sometimes “more intense than it was a year ago”. “In many parts of Ukraine, including places where people have fled, there are air alerts several times a day. There are attacks, also in Kiev, also in Lviv.” Last week in Lviv, for example, the windows of the house of one of her UNHCR colleagues were broken by the force of an attack.
Acts of war in Ukraine (and Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014) from February 24, 2022 to February 16, 2024, according to the ACLED conflict observatory, by type of battle
Intentions to return exist, but are decreasing
According to a recent UNHCR survey, the majority of Ukrainian IDPs and refugees surveyed still want to return one day. But the proportion decreases with each additional month of war. The deciding factor, says Billig, is whether family members are still in the old house and whether the old apartments are intact.
A study carried out by the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Vienna University of Economics and Business recently showed that Ukraine's neighboring countries, such as Poland, were chosen by refugees due to their geographical proximity, while the high quality of life and housing was relevant. to receive countries further west. The desire to stay is correspondingly greater in the latter countries.
UNHCR/Andrew McConnel One of UNHCR's priorities in Ukraine is repairing destroyed homes
Still huge financial needs
UNHCR supports people in Ukraine in a range of areas, from cash assistance to legal advice on documents that have gone missing or are difficult to obtain in combat zones. Providing emergency housing and repairing damaged homes and apartments is a priority; around 28,000 homes have been repaired since the start of the war.
The financial needs are still enormous: to provide people in Ukraine and neighboring countries with emergency care, protection, shelter and monetary assistance, UNHCR needs 993.3 million US dollars (almost 920 million) in 2024, according to a recent announcement. ). “If we do not receive funding in a timely manner, we may be forced to restrict essential activities in Ukraine and neighboring countries,” he said.
“Everyone used to write about Ukraine, but not anymore,” Billing concludes the conversation – but not before thanking “the people in Austria and the government of Austria for their support.”