Ukraine - dis(place)_ment

On 24 February 2022 Russia invaded Ukraine in a steep escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War which had begun in 2014, causing Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. The United Nations’ refugee agency says more than eight million Ukrainians have been forced to flee their country, estimating 12 million people in total have fled their homes since the invasion, making a quarter of Ukraine’s population and half of the countries children officially displaced.

Most refugees are women, children, and the elderly, or people with disabilities. Male Ukrainian nationals aged 18 to 60 are denied exit from Ukraine as part of mandatory conscription, unless under an exemption.

Enormous challenges lie ahead, as this conflict becomes protracted, in a humanitarian crisis that could last decades, in what threatens the physical, psychological, and material well-being of all those displaced. The war waged by Russia, is not only a war not only against the contemporary political regime within Ukraine but also against future generations. The pain inflicted, and legacy will last years.