Ukrainian refugees face lasting exile as Russia’s war enters its third year

Germany and Poland host the largest populations, with about one million Ukrainian refugees in each country.

Iryna, Maryna, Katya — three generations from one family — fled their home in southern Ukraine just after the war started, hoping to return quickly.

But two years later, these hopes are fading.

Just a few days ago, a fresh attack blew off the roofs of many buildings in their home city of Mykolaiv.

“Ukraine’s future is not clear. I think that the war will not stop, even in one or two years,” said Maryna Troshchenko, 43, while showing photos of the damage sent to her by relatives still living in the port city.

Ms. Troshchenko, her mother and her daughter, who all now live in Vienna, are among six million Ukrainian refugees, marking the biggest exodus in Europe since the Second World War, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Germany and Poland host the largest populations, with about one million Ukrainian refugees in each country.

Incessant bombings and a lack of progress on the front make their return in the short term increasingly improbable.