Why is the UK turning its back on Ukrainian refugees?

In April 2022, just months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Boris Johnson paid a surprise visit to Kyiv. After a meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, the then UK prime minister promised that ‘the United Kingdom stands unwaveringly with [Ukraine] in this ongoing fight, and we are in it for the long run’. Addressing the Ukrainian parliament later that year, Johnson reaffirmed Britain’s commitment: ‘We in the UK will do everything we can to restore a free, sovereign and independent Ukraine… We’re with you.’

More than three years later, Ukraine is still fighting what many are beginning to see as an intractable war. The human and economic cost, unsurprisingly, is increasingly dire. According to official estimates by Zelensky’s government, the Ukrainian death toll is over 46,000, with ‘tens of thousands’ more missing. US estimates suggest this number might actually be far higher.

Great Britain has been one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters since Russia’s invasion. It has given Ukraine more than £10 billion in military support, and is expected to provide an extra £4.5 billion this year. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops have been trained by the UK, and advanced battlefield technology has been shared. Around 300,000 Ukrainian refugees have also moved to the UK – but their future is now in serious doubt.

Three schemes allowed Ukrainians to seek asylum in the UK after Russia’s invasion. These lasted for three years, with many granted an option to extend for a further 18 months. Now a change of tune at the Home Office, which declared it ‘safe’ to return to western Ukraine in January, has cast doubt on the status of many refugees. An increasing number of Ukrainian refugees are even having their asylum claims knocked back.

One such refugee is 26-year-old Tetiana, who has lived in West Sussex for several years. She works, pays tax and lives in private rented housing with her mother and sister. However, while she is safe from war, she currently faces significant uncertainty over the visa that allows her to remain here. Like many other Ukrainians, Tetiana’s visa expires at the end of next year.

When I asked about her experience in the UK, she tells me:

‘People ask me when I will go back to Ukraine. I think they want me to leave… My country is at war. I cannot go back. I want to feel secure. I feel frustrated and scared sometimes. In Ukraine, everything is very expensive, and salaries are very low. I don’t know how people survive. Russia is attacking every day, even bombing small towns. We don’t know when it will stop.’

It’s not just the war Ukrainians are pessimistic about. Back in 2022, citizens were optimistic about Ukraine’s postwar future and its potential to flourish inside the Western fold. Now almost half think it is doomed to become ‘a depopulated country with a ruined economy’. According to another survey, 70 per cent of Ukrainians believe their leaders are using the war as a means to enrich themselves.

Like Tetiana, many Ukrainian refugees now want a stable life in Britain. They want to get married and have families. But for those stuck in citizenship limbo, these hopes feel increasingly out of reach. Crucially, Ukrainians in the UK lack indefinite leave to remain, a visa status that would provide them lasting security and enable them to plan for the future. The fact that the UK’s Ukraine Permission Extension scheme only extends visas 18 months weighs heavily on them, and often makes it difficult to obtain work and accommodation as the deadline draws near.

The updated guidance on the safety of Ukraine also suggests a disheartening shift within the British establishment. Clearly, western Ukraine is not ‘generally safe’ in any meaningful sense. This classification even applies to Kyiv, which is still being bombed by Russia.

The fact that vulnerable refugees are being turned away is undeniably a stain on our country. When it comes to Ukraine, it seems that Britain wants to have it both ways: we support the war but want little to do with the resettlement of its victims – despite the majority being hard-working men and women who want to contribute to British society. ‘I pay lots of tax and don’t take anything’, says Tetiana. ‘I just want to live my life.’

Only 45 per cent of displaced Ukrainians are planning to return to Ukraine. This is compared with 34 per cent who are planning to obtain citizenship of another country – and a further 12 per cent who already have. ‘I’ve adapted to life here… It’s my second home’, says Tetiana.

Britain can be proud of its welcoming of Ukrainian refugees. Our military support has no doubt saved many Ukrainian lives and kept the fight alive for Ukraine’s freedom. What a tragedy it would be to turn our backs on Ukrainians now.

Samuel Turner is a writer.