Since the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian war on February 24, about 8 million people in Ukraine have fled abroad, most of them to Europe, accounting for about 20% of the total population of Ukraine.
As Russia intensified its air strikes on Ukraine, Ukraine's domestic infrastructure was severely damaged, and its electricity and heating capabilities were deteriorating. About 7 million people in Ukraine were displaced and became a reserve army for international refugees. There is widespread concern in Europe that this winter, European may usher in a new "Ukrainian refugee tsunami".
A tsunami of Ukrainian refugees
Recently, many European countries bordering Ukraine have noticed a phenomenon: the number of Ukrainian refugees crossing the border is increasing. If the war continues like this, it may not be or , but must be . The inevitable refugee tsunami of , the third refugee tsunami after spring and autumn, may not be the last refugee tsunami.
Fleeing Ukrainians on the road
The support for Ukraine from European politicians appears, at least on the surface, to be genuine. Dignitaries from many countries have marked their political resumes as "risking their lives to visit Ukraine and supporting Ukraine on the ground."
Johnson, Macron, Scholz and other European politicians visited Ukraine
European people also support the acceptance of Ukrainian refugees. Their initial idea was to entertain these Ukrainian "guests" from far away so that Zelensky would have no worries and lead Ukraine to compete with Russia.
Europeans held demonstrations in support of Ukraine
So, how did various countries initially resettle the Ukrainian refugees who arrived in Europe?
Non- EU countries The UK's approach is quite representative.
The UK launched the "Home for Ukraine" program, which was launched on March 18. Before the plan was launched, then-Prime Minister Johnson was criticized for dragging his feet in accepting Ukrainian refugees. He reluctantly launched the plan under pressure.
Johnson's messy blond hair once fluttered in the wind on the streets of war-torn Kiev . In front of Ukrainian President Zelensky, he vowed to firmly support Ukraine until victory. But when it came time for him to accept Ukrainian refugees, he was a little bit. . . . . .
Former British Prime Minister Johnson
This plan is specifically like this.
The government will provide a £350 monthly "thank you payment" to landlords for enthusiastic British families willing to take in Ukrainian refugees. British non-governmental organizations, including charitable organizations, NGOs, or community organizations, have also taken active actions and established groups on Facebook and other social platforms to actively help Ukrainian refugees communicate with British landlords. As long as both parties are successfully matched, the refugees can obtain visas to enter and resettle many people. However, for the growing number of Ukrainian refugees, it is still a drop in the bucket.
Ukrainian refugees staying with British families
Later, many families felt that the "thank you money" given by the government was too little, so some MPs proposed to increase the "thank you money" to 700 pounds. This proposal has been shelved since October and has still not been taken up. Later, many civil society organizations worried that Ukrainian refugees would be evicted by their landlords began to make up for the insufficient "thank you money" from their own pockets.
The British government has also promised to provide annual assistance of 10,500 pounds to each Ukrainian refugee participating in the program. Refugees can stay in the UK for three years. During their stay, they can work and enjoy public services and national welfare. Child refugees can attend local schools, etc. But what was finally delivered was not very good, and even the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees could not stand it.
In a word, this "Give Ukrainians a Home" plan puts most of the responsibility for accepting refugees on British non-governmental organizations and British people, and the government just thinks about it.
European Union countries have adopted similar practices to the UK and have developed similar plans to arrange for Ukrainian refugees to live in private families.
Of course, each country has its own characteristics.
Poland accepts Ukrainian refugees
The Bulgarian government once placed 35,000 Ukrainian refugees in luxury resort hotels in the country. Ireland also uses about a quarter of the country's hotels to house Ukrainian refugees. The Polish government opened reception centers and stocked up on hygiene products and food. Slovakia launched an emergency plan and sent government personnel to resettle Ukrainian refugees everywhere.
To be honest, people in European countries are more active in resettling Ukrainian refugees and have paid more.
Ukrainian refugees resettled in Germany
However, governments and people soon fell into aid fatigue, and the initial hospitality gradually cooled down, and the rejection of Ukrainian refugees became increasingly serious. What happened to
?
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine is protracted, with no end in sight. More and more refugees are pouring in, and the public resources of European countries are being excessively consumed.
Governments around the world are feeling the financial pressure.
As early as September, Germany announced that after accepting about 1 million Ukrainian refugees, the carrying capacity of German states had reached its limit and it would be difficult to accept new refugees.
On November 1, Austria changed its policy of offering free train travel to all Ukrainians to offering it only to those arriving in the country for the first time.
Part of the resettlement projects of the UK's "Give Ukrainians a Home" program are about to expire, and there are currently no clear replacement arrangements. It is expected that one-third of the refugees participating in the program will soon be homeless.
Even Poland, the most popular country in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, recently changed its regulations to require any Ukrainian who stays in the country for more than 120 days to pay part of their accommodation costs.
. . . . . .
There are also divisions within the government.
In Germany, Rolf Mitzenich, chairman of the Social Democratic Party's parliamentary group in the Bundestag, believed that talks with Putin should not be completely ruled out, and criticized the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for not actively seeking a diplomatic solution. The far-right Alternative for Africa party has never concealed its pro-Russian tendencies, and its approval ratings in opinion polls have steadily increased.
The Alternative for Germany
The two leaders of the Alternative for Germany, Alexander Gauland (left) and Alice Weidel (right)
In France, far-right leader Marine Le Pen advocates the lifting of sanctions against Russia on the grounds that the sanctions will cause greater harm to France. Le Pen is also very fed up with the government's large-scale support for Ukraine.
In Italy, as poll support for Europe's aid to Ukraine in arms continues to fall, support within the government for continuing to send arms to Ukraine has also dropped to a freezing point.
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is known as the most dangerous woman in France. She is close to Russia
The Troika of the European Union is like this, and other small European countries are similar.
Even the United States, Europe's "big brother", has also undergone changes, and anti-Ukrainian sentiment within the Republican Party has intensified. The new Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy has said that after the Republican Party takes control of the House of Representatives, the United States will not give Ukraine another penny. Republicans now control the House of Representatives.
The public can no longer support it.
Affected by the energy crisis and high inflation, every aspect of European people's lives has been severely impacted. Life has become increasingly difficult, with incomes declining and bills rising. Because of this war, the living standards of the European people almost dropped to the lowest point in decades. itself is so difficult, how can it still have room to receive Ukrainian "guests" from far away.
The intensifying European energy crisis
The behavior of some Ukrainian refugees has also aroused the disgust of the European "masters".
Ukrainians and Russians are both Slavs , authentic fighting nations. There have been many conflicts between Ukrainian refugees and local people, and the security situation in European countries has deteriorated. Take Sweden as an example. After accepting hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees, crimes such as robberies and sexual violence surged exponentially in major Swedish cities, turning this Nordic paradise into a criminal paradise with extremely high crime rates.
There are considerable cultural differences between Ukraine and many European countries. Families taking in Ukrainian refugees are also experiencing cultural distress. Tell me something even more bizarre. In the UK, a female Ukrainian refugee hooked up with the male host and successfully took over, but the hostess was kicked out.
Compared with Western Europe and Nordic countries, there is a big gap in living standards between Ukraine and Western Europe and Nordic countries. Many refugees enjoy good food and drink locally, but are unwilling to go out to work. They even have the idea of never returning to Ukraine and taking root there.
So, under the combined effect of various factors, the following things happened.
Demonstrations calling for the expulsion of refugees have taken place in various European countries, including Poland, the most hospitable "host".
Demonstrations broke out in Europe, demanding an end to arms aid to Ukraine, and peace negotiations were held.
Demonstrations demanding an end to military aid to Ukraine also occurred one after another. On October 5, in Rome, the capital of Italy, trade unions and multiple religious associations and peace organizations held the largest peace rally since the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian war. It is said that more than 100,000 people participated. People held up banners that read "Stop the shipment of weapons" and "Peace", demanding peace negotiations and an end to the Russo-Ukrainian war. Of course, they also wanted to send these refugees home quickly.
Displaced Ukrainians
The image of the "host" being hospitable and the "guests" being moved and happy is gone forever.
The reason is that the "owner" is too naive and thinks he can fill a bottomless pit. The "guest" is too naive and does not realize that as long as he affects the interests of the "host", he will be kicked out ruthlessly by the "host".
Portraits of Vladimir Putin on the streets of Ukraine
Ukrainian refugees are very sad. They have a home and cannot return. They are wandering around the world and have been subjected to cold looks and humiliation. Now most of them are eager to go home as soon as possible. The European people are also helpless. They are sincerely hospitable and have made great sacrifices, but in the end they can only be disgraceful.
Who is the happiest? "Big brother taking the lead" America! The commander-in-chief of the United States has made countless grand announcements to aid Ukraine, with a wave of his hand and tens of billions of dollars. Then, in a roundabout way, the money returned to the hands of American arms dealers.
Zelensky’s visit to the United States was welcomed with love
The spokesperson of the United States in Europe is also very happy. After all, if the eldest brother is happy, so are they.
Finally, we found that American taxpayers’ money was squandered, countless people died on the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield, countless refugees were produced in Ukraine, and Europe has been repeatedly ravaged by refugee crises.
In this war, there are really few winners, so few that only a small number of people are still on the other side of the distant ocean.
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