The Russian invasion forced many Ukrainians to leave their country. Most arrived in Poland. Now thousands of Ukrainians are making their way home again.
Przemysl – Already an hour before the departure of the train to Kyiv, a long line formed in front of the Przemysl train station in southern Poland. Hundreds of people wait patiently in front of passport control. Behind it, on a special Russian broad gauge track, is the shiny silver Intercity, which is supposed to bring the refugees to the Ukraine.
Ukraine war: Refugees on their way back to their homeland – “Great longing”
Antonina Belinska pushes her big red suitcase on wheels. After the start of the Ukraine conflict a good six weeks ago, the 40-year-old cinema costume designer fled Kyiv. In Denmark she has found protection – and even work in her field. Nevertheless, she would now like to go home for a week: “I can’t help it, I just miss my friend very much.” The security situation has just eased a bit, said Antonina. “You can also get used to war.”
Apparently many Ukrainians think the same way. Recently, the Ukrainian army has recaptured some cities and regions, especially in the north, while the Russians are concentrating their attacks on the east of the country. As of April 10, 2022, fewer people are fleeing Ukraine than in the first weeks of the war – and more are daring to return to their country.
Ukraine War: In one day 19,400 crossed Polish border towards Ukraine
This is shown by the numbers of the Polish border guard. Around 28,500 people arrived in Poland from Ukraine on Sunday (April 10), a significant decrease compared to March. On the same day, 19,400 people crossed the border towards Ukraine. In total, more than a quarter of a million men, women and children have entered Ukraine from Poland since the beginning of the war. The change can be felt at the Medyka border crossing twelve kilometers east of Przemysl. The big rush with hours of waiting is over – at least for the time being. Groups of refugees are coming from the Ukraine. Their numbers are almost equal to those heading east to Ukraine.
Ukraine war: “It’s always better at home”
In front of the train station in Przemysl, the queue of passengers for the train to Kyiv is slowly moving forward. Pensioner Vitalij (73) wants to go to his hometown of Chernihiv. On March 20, he fled to Poland with his wife, daughter and three grandchildren. The family is housed in a monastery in Tuchow, southern Poland. But Vitalij now returns alone. “I have to plant potatoes. My house is still standing, they bombed my neighbor’s.” The old man says of his time in Poland that he couldn’t bear to eat “foreign bread”. And adds almost defiantly: “It’s always better at home.”
Tamara (70) and her daughter Irina (42) also want to return to Kyiv. They came to Poland at the beginning of March. The people in the neighboring country would have received them with great hospitality. “It’s quiet here, no grenades are flying. But it’s not home,” says Tamara about Poland. And Irina says that the head of the beauty salon where she worked as a beautician in Kyiv has already asked all the employees to come back because business is starting up again.
Meanwhile, the negotiations continue. Vladimir Putin will receive Austria’s Chancellor Nehammer on Monday. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov has accused the EU of “subjugating Russia”. (dpa/lp)
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