‘We Were Just Happy’: Ukrainian Refugees Find Safe Haven in Australia

A supplied images shows Ukrainian-Australian family members Veronika Tyshchenko, Raisa Ptashnyk, Maryna Tyshchenko, Iryna Ptashnyk posing for a photograph at Sydney Airport, Sunday, March 6, 2022. (AAP Image/Supplied by Maryna Tyshchenko)

Some of the first Ukrainian refugees have found sanctuary in Australia as the Russian-Ukraine war continues to escalate.

Maryna Tyshchenko, a Ukrainian Australian resident, was on the brink of tears when reuniting with her sister and mother at Sydney airport on March. 6.

Raisa Ptashnyk, 58, and Iryna Ptashnyk, 30, spent their last night in a bomb shelter at their home in Kyiv. After being granted Australian visas last week, they packed a small suitcase with documents and some clothes on March 2, before embarking on a five-day journey to flee their homeland.

“I was about to cry and I was surprised, we were just happy… this war, we got stronger I think—because we are stronger we didn’t cry,” Tyshchenko told AAP.

Her mother and sister are among more than 1.5 million Ukrainians estimated to have run away from their country since the Russia-Ukraine situation deteriorated, with the department of home affairs issuing more than 1700 visas since Feb. 23.

Iryna Ptashnyk’s boyfriend drove her and her mother to western Ukraine, where they passed the Romanian border and caught a bus for refugees to Suceava County. They then took a train to the capital city Bucharest, before boarding a Singapore Airlines flight for Sydney via Turkey and Singapore.

Tyshchenko’s father decided to stay despite the danger while her sister’s boyfriend has to stay in Ukraine due to the decision of the Ukrainian government to enact martial law which currently prohibits male citizens aged 18—60 years old from leaving the country.

Tyshchenko kept in touch with her family through WhatsApp, and she said while her sister finally feels safe, she has suffered trauma and may need psychological help.

Ukrainian refugees at the Western Railway Station wait in warming buses for the night as they flee Ukraine on March 7, 2022 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Janos Kummer/Getty Images)

However, as the number of Ukrainian residents fleeing to Australia increases, some of the Ukrainian families with small children are facing obstacles in obtaining visas.

Iryna Zaiets’s family fled Ukraine when the Russian invasion began. The family secured visas and flights to Sydney, but when they went to board a flight in Poland last week, they were not allowed to board because their nine-month-old baby did not have travel documents.

Zaiets’ sister in Sydney Olha Lyeskakova had spent a week dealing with authorities in Poland, Ukraine, and Australia. She said her family is set to land in Australia this weekend.

“I am the first one but there is a queue of people in the same circumstances and they are looking at me for how to manage all this,” she told AAP.

Stefan Romaniw, the federation co-chair of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations, said it is working with welfare organisations to offer support for Ukrainian refugees, especially Ukrainian women and children who have suffered trauma.

“Australia is 20,000 km away, they’ve come from a war zone… those children obviously have seen things,” he told AAP.

Most Ukrainian refugees are expected to arrive in Sydney and Melbourne, along with Adelaide and Brisbane.

Meanwhile, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has announced that any Ukrainians who is currently in Australia and has a visa that is due to expire by June 30, 2022, will be given an extension.

“All Ukrainian nationals in Australia with a visa due to expire by 30 June will be given an automatic extension for six months,” Hawke said.

“The government is progressing visa applications from Ukrainian nationals as a priority.”

AAP contributed to this article.