After two days in a Budapest hotel, the family found an elderly Hungarian couple living in the countryside nearby who agreed to host Alisa, her brother and her parents. The couple said their Ukrainian visitors could stay as long as they needed. But recently, as the Hungarian government announced huge increases in energy bills for households using above the national average, the couple made an embarrassing request. “Back then, they said we could stay until the end of the war, but now they’ve realized they can’t afford the energy bills. They very politely told us we had to leave,” said Alisa, who spent the summer working long shifts in a Hungarian factory even though she is still a minor. “It took me two buses and four hours to get there, and the same to get back every day. The work was tedious, destroying old electronics for hours. But at least I got some money with which I could help my family,” he said. In the six months since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, countries bordering Ukraine, as well as others across Europe, have launched an unprecedented effort to help millions of Ukrainian refugees. Governments have funded emergency relief programs and millions of ordinary citizens have volunteered to provide food, clothing and shelter. But as an uncertain and potentially costly winter approaches, governments are withdrawing support programs for Ukrainians, while many volunteers who were happy to host a Ukrainian family for a few weeks or months now realize the war could drag on for years. More and more Ukrainian refugees are struggling to make ends meet. “There is a wave of evictions now from families who say they cannot afford to be hosts,” said Anastasia Chukovskaya, a Russian volunteer living in Budapest who has set up an organization to help Ukrainians arriving in Hungary. Ukrainian refugees in Uszka, Hungary. Photo: János Kummer/Getty Images Some Ukrainian refugees have settled into new lives across Europe and are thriving. But while young and internet-savvy Ukrainians have been able to access help, find information and connect with people willing to help, aid workers say often older and more vulnerable refugees, especially those who cannot speak English or other foreign languages, do not know where to turn and may fall between the cracks. “There is a real problem with food and supplies, and there are people who really don’t have enough to eat and don’t know how to access help,” Chukovskaya said. Even those with money face the uncertainty of not knowing when it might be safe or possible to return home, as well as host populations that may be closing in on Ukrainians. One refugee, from the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk, came to Budapest with her son when the war broke out because her husband had been working in a factory there for the past two years. They have rented a room in a dormitory run by the company her husband works for, but in recent weeks management has told the family to leave as the space is needed for other workers. The woman, who did not want to be named, said she could not return to Ivano-Frankivsk because several relatives from eastern Ukraine, whose homes have been destroyed, were now living in her apartment. She has enough money to rent a small apartment in Budapest, but has found it impossible to find a landlord willing to rent to her. “When we say we’re Ukrainian and we have a child, it’s just ‘No, no, no.’ I called about 70 different apartments and they all said no,” he said. “I honestly have no idea what we’re going to do.” Other European countries have proven to be much more welcoming than Hungary. But even in Poland, which has taken in more refugees than anywhere else, and where helping Ukraine and Ukrainians is seen as a matter of national pride, a recent survey found that 62% of respondents felt that supporting Ukrainian refugees had become “too expensive”. As winter approaches, the fighting looks set to continue and large parts of Ukraine may be left without heating, prompting predictions that new refugees could arrive in Europe and find far less help than those who came before them. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Ada Wordsworth, a British volunteer who has been stationed in and around the Polish border town of Przemyśl since the conflict began, said the number of people crossing now was much lower than in the spring and that most Ukrainians now had destination before crossing the border, having spoken to friends or relatives who are already abroad. Children fleeing Ukraine arrive at the train station in Zahony, Hungary. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images However, every day there are people crossing with no idea where to go next, and most of the provisions that could be made for them in the spring are no longer available. “The people coming through now are the most traumatized people we’ve ever met, and there’s just not much to offer them. Imagine, they stayed in their houses all this time, so something very bad must have happened to them to leave now,” said Wordsworth. She said many people she met at the border when they arrived in Poland kept in touch and later told her they were returning home because they couldn’t settle in Europe. “I have met many people who have returned because things are very difficult in Europe, but then they return to Kharkiv and realize that it is better to be poor in Europe than to be bombed in Kharkiv, so they come back again.” he said. The situation varies from country to country, but across Europe many Ukrainian refugees have struggled with access to healthcare and education. Some parents are unsure about sending their children to schools in their new countries where their children will not be able to speak the local language, especially if they hope to return home soon. After being asked by their hosts to leave their temporary home, Alisa’s parents plan to return to Ukraine. They don’t know if their apartment in Kharkiv is still intact, so for now the family will stay with friends in the western city of Lviv. They hope that there, Alisa’s mother can receive medical attention for the severe anxiety attacks she has experienced since the start of the war. “He really struggled. He tried to get help here, but none of the doctors could really help,” Alisa said, citing the language barrier. Alisa plans to stay in Hungary for now: she has found a place at an arts college in Budapest to continue her studies. But he hopes it will only be temporary. “I really want to go back, I miss it every day. I am sure that I will return to Kharkiv soon,” she said.
