Despite two years of war and a new Russian offensive underway in northeastern Ukraine, there is still only one crossing point between the two countries: in Sumy. A humanitarian corridor through which Ukrainians from occupied zones in the north of the country pass.
2 mins
With our special correspondents in Sumy, Bertrand Haekler and Nathanaël Vittrant
In Sumy, capital of the Oblast, the region of the same name north of Ukraine, the Russian border is around fifty kilometers away. This is the only crossing point still open between the two countries. After crossing the border, the Ukrainian refugees are taken to an anonymous building on the outskirts of the city.
Vitaly is the coordinator: “ It’s the simplest and fastest way to go from Russian Federation to Ukraine. Ukrainians from temporarily occupied areas who have been forcibly issued a Russian passport can return through this corridor, even if they only have a photocopy or photo of their Ukrainian papers with them. “, he explains.
“ They are stressed by what they have experienced »
It is the vast majority of women like Halyna who cross the passage. She comes from Luhansk, in occupied Donbass. “ I have a daughter in the army who is going to give birth soon, so I’m coming to help with the kids “, she confides.
On a bench, before being questioned, Matryona, 68, holds her Ukrainian passport tightly in her hands. “ I moved to Moscow before the war, my daughter lives there and she has a disabled daughter. But she is big now and I want to go home, to my garden near Odessa “, she reports.
The refugees who arrive here are also received by psychologists like Tatiana. “ They are stressed, sometimes traumatized by what they experienced. They had to leave their homes, they left behind family or pets. This is why they need psychological support “, says the psychologist.
Russia currently leads an offensive around Kharkivbut Sumy could become the new hot spot on the front line, with still uncertain consequences on the opening of this humanitarian corridor.
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