You’ve betrayed us, Mr President

UKRAINIAN refugees living in the Henley area say President Donald Trump has betrayed them with his views on the war with Russia.

The US leader has come under fire after he appeared to accuse Ukraine for being responsible for the start of the conflict, which reached its third anniversary on Monday.

President Trump has also made claims about President Volodymyr Zelensky’s popularity and noted that Ukraine had yet to hold elections due to martial law and called him a “dictator without elections”.

Since the war started on February 24, 2022, about 400 Ukrainians have fled their country and moved to South Oxfordshire under government rehoming schemes.

Anna Ovchynnikova, 36, who lives in Caversham, fears for the future of her country now President Trump is involved in negotiating a possible end to hostilities.

She said: “The years have been difficult and now we have these negotiations, it is starting to feel like we are being betrayed. The world order is broken because in some views, Ukraine is now being called the aggressor rather than Russia.”

Mrs Ovchynnikova left her home in Kyiv in March 2022 with her daughter Kseniia, eight, and mother Nataliia, 64.

They spent three months in Germany before they were invited to stay with a host family in Sonning Common through the national Homes for Ukraine scheme.

They stayed with Andrew and Kathleen Saoulis for two-and-a-half months, whom she had met previously through her work in IT. Mrs Ovchynnikova, has worked for Accton, an IT firm in Reading, since before the war.

Her daughter now attends Thameside Primary School while her husband Oleksander, 37, is serving in the military in Ukraine.

She said: “Many people have died and many people miss their families. In Ukraine, people are depressed as the Russians are attacking every night and people can't live their normal lives.

“You are checking every night and every day if your family has survived, sometimes I check my phone three times a night. It has been almost three years, and my daughter has only seen her dad twice. I don’t want to take her there too often because it’s not safe so it’s always a compromise because we can’t control what happens.

“Kyiv is more protected compared with other cities. It’s not like some other areas where they are under attack every day. But the problem is that Russia is attacking every night and every day.”

Vadym Samoilenko, 34, is a project manager who lives in Middle Assendon with his wife Anastasiia, 34, and daughter Victoria, six.

They fled Dnipro, arriving in the UK in April 2022 initially staying with their sponsor family in Henley before moving to private rented accommodation in Middle Assendon.

Mr Samoilenko is unhappy with the deal that was thrashed out this week to give the US access to minerals mined in Ukraine in response for its military support.

He said: “President Trump doesn't care about the Ukrainian people, Ukrainian territory or peace in Ukraine. I want to have peace in my country but I don’t like the idea of providing access to our natural resources. It’s a shame.

“I believe that if Ukraine doesn’t receive a security guarantee from the US and other European countries moving forward, which will mean military support in Ukrainian territory, the next step is Russia going to Europe.

“From my experience living in Ukraine, Zelensky is not a dictator at all. I think Trump wants to have American money back because that is what his politics is about.”

Mr Samoilenko said it was difficult to find a job when he first came to the UK and that he has to apply for an extension on his visa of which he doesn’t know what the outcome will be.

He said: “If you would like to have a high-level job you need to prove your education, in my case before I found this company, I spent around six or seven months going into interviews to prepare.

“It is difficult because we don't understand what is going on in the future. Now we have a programme to stay here for an additional 18 months.

“Before 28 days of our visa expiring, we need to apply for the Ukrainian extension permission scheme and need to wait around eight weeks for a decision. I am going through this process at the end of March.”

Olga Korchova, 64, moved to Sonning Common in August 2022 with her twin sons Maxim and Matthew, 18, and her mother Elena, 96.

They lived with their sponsor for three months before moving to their current rented home in Sonning Common. She said she sympathises with Ukrainian soldiers and wants the war to end.

She said: “It is a horrible situation in Ukraine I am absolutely frustrated, especially today because it is the anniversary of the three years since the war began.

“The first month here was hard because it was a shock for me and my family and when we came to the UK we met very kind people. I am so happy because we are surrounded by warm and caring English people.

“I want to stay with my children, I am single I don't have a husband if I go to Ukraine alone, I will die.”