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Humanitarian and Refugee Crisis in Ukraine
March 10, 2022
The humanitarian situation in Ukraine continues to deteriorate following Russia's invasion on February
24, 2022. Russia's war against Ukraine threatens to trigger a wider humanitarian crisis and has resulted in
massive refugee flows to neighboring countries. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
stated that the war could cause Europe's largest refugee crisis this century. With strong bipartisan
support for the humanitarian response, Congress may increase U.S. humanitarian funding for Ukraine (see
H.R. 2471) while considering related challenges such as humanitarian access and protection.
Conditions Inside Ukraine
As a result of Russia's invasion, worsening humanitarian conditions have affected millions of people
inside Ukraine (which has a total population of about 44 million, including Crimea). As of March 8, 2022,
an estimated 1 million people had become internally displaced persons (IDPs) since late February.
(Previously, the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine since 2014 had resulted in an estimated 1.4 million
IDPs, with roughly 3 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and protection.) In the current
crisis, national and international humanitarian groups have limited or no access to areas under attack.
Evacuations from cities under siege by Russian forces are also precarious, with widespread reports of
violations of human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL). The needs of IDPs and the
communities hosting them are changing with the situation on the ground and are likely to intensify, given
the conduct of hostilities.
Refugee Flows to Europe
As of March 9, 2022, UNHCR reported that more than 2.3 million refugees-half of which were
estimated to be children-had fled recent hostilities in Ukraine, with more than 50% arriving in Poland.
Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, and other European countries are also receiving large numbers of
refugees. Although many of the refugees have been welcomed in the short term, the willingness and
capacity of neighboring and other countries to host Ukrainian refugees in the long term is not yet clear.
Government authorities, humanitarian organizations, local communities, and volunteers providing refugee
reception and assistance have reported various challenges, including congestion and delays at most
crossing points, and difficulties for third-country nationals trying to flee Ukraine. In addition, up to
100,000 people reportedly moved from Russian-occupied areas in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk
regions to the Russian Federation (and Belarus) in the days before the start of hostilities, but their status is
unclear.
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
IN11882
CRS INSIGHT
Prepared for Members and
Committees of Congress

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