Ukrainian refugees who reluctantly find themselves under Moscow’s rule are receiving help from an unlikely quarter: networks of Russian volunteers helping those displaced by the war to leave Russia.
When Bogdan Goncharov, his wife and 7-year-old daughter fled the shelling in their hometown of Mariupol in mid-March, they ended up in Russian-controlled territory in south eastern Ukraine. Fearful of being transported thousands of kilometers away after hearing other refugees were sent to Siberia, Goncharov said he contacted a Russian volunteer who arranged transport for them across Russia to the Estonian border.
"It's a miracle we got out," said 26-year old Goncharov, who worked as a builder before the war and is now starting a new life in Sweden. "It's thanks to the volunteers."