By now, Kyiv had largely escaped fierce fighting, he said. Mathias Bölinger from the capital. On the outskirts of the city, where he met with volunteers of the territorial defense forces, residents are on alert. With Russian troops less than 10 kilometers away, residents are busy preparing for attacks. They have set up giant roadblocks to prevent Russian troops from advancing and patrolling for spies.
Nick Connollyalso mentioning Kyiv, notes that there has been widespread unity within the European Union and allied countries such as Britain and the United States, but adds that the full extent of the impact of sanctions and other economic measures used to isolate the Kremlin is not yet known. He asks how long people in the European Union, where economies are closely linked to Russia’s economies, will be willing to accept the financial punishment themselves as a result of sanctions.
Head of DW’s Brussels office Alexandra von Nahmen, citing from Lviv in western Ukraine, says many residents believe it is only a matter of time before war breaks out in their city. Meanwhile, they are doing everything they can to help refugees arriving from the east, but authorities are struggling with limited resources. Von Nahman reports that the mayor said he was concerned that the city might not have enough places to house all the displaced.
Many of the refugees he spoke to are clearly injured. They cry when they tell her about how they were forced to leave behind mothers and relatives. “People have been left dead, hidden in cellars,” said a woman from Kharkov. Another explains how she has not heard anything from her mother in Mariupol since March 2.
Von Nahmen says the refugees have no clear plan for where to go after leaving Ukraine. “They’re just desperate to get out,” he says.
Anna Phil has also made reports from Lviv, where he says the situation has worsened. Thousands of people crowded at the train station, waiting in a huge queue for a stop on a train heading west.
“People standing on it can not even say exactly where they are going,” he says. “They know there are trains going to Poland every two hours. They do not know in which city this train will take them, and it basically does not matter.” For these refugees, who have fled fighting and rocket attacks, wherever is best.
International Women’s Day Fanny Fassar reports from a women’s shelter in Chernivtsi, where volunteers provide food and protection to 120 internally displaced women and children. The shelter, which before the war provided a safe haven for victims of domestic abuse, has opened its doors to refugees fleeing further east. Many women also support the war effort by baking bread or sewing for front-line fighters.
Tessa Walther was in Przemysl, Poland, where he saw heartbreaking scenes on the border with Ukraine. Hundreds of thousands of women and children have fled to the neighboring country, leaving their husbands behind. “What people really need right now is a little time to rest, a little time to process what they have seen,” he said.
He said volunteers here “have come from everywhere”, from all over Europe and as far away as India and Canada, to help, some working “24 hours a day”.
Report from Krakow, Poland, Max Zander met with refugees at a youth center that helps children forget their problems. He says people from all over Poland have come to his aid.
You can follow DW correspondents on Twitter at @dwnews
Add Comment