Muristek
‘Difficult to leave, but impossible to stay’: Ukrainians under siege forced to flee their homes
As the “window to leave” Ukraine’s capital Kyiv closes, the city is becoming increasingly unsafe for its residents, according to policy advisor Svitlana Zalishcuk. Ms Zalishcuk, who is a foreign policy advisor to Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, escaped Kyiv for western Ukraine with her family when Russian forces entered the country. Some 1.5 million Ukrainians have left the country since the Russian invasion began, in what the United Nations has termed Europe’s fastest moving refugee crisis since the end of World War Two. “When we decided to leave, there were already explosions happening around Kyiv and still many people decided to stay, despite the fact that we already could see that the war has started,” Ms Zalishcuk said. “It is very difficult to leave, but also impossible to stay - because it’s not safe, and so many people are dying now. “The window to leave the city is also closing, because now the entrance is blocked from many sides of the capital. “It was very difficult to leave because it’s our home, it’s our everything there. “I don’t know if we are coming back, and when are we coming back. Is it my life now, to be a refugee? I don’t have my home, my country anymore.”
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