Ukrainians are more united now than they have been at any time since the country became independent in 1991, a  Groningen-based Ukrainian journalist, who returned to Ukraine by chance, just as Russian troops invaded, has told DutchNews.nl

Andrii Degeler, who spoke to DutchNews.nl earlier about the first two days after the invasion, is now in the western part of Ukraine, having managed to get his mother to safety within the country itself.

‘As a Ukrainian man, I am no longer allowed to leave, but we are safe where we are at the moment,’ said Degeler, whose wife and child live in Groningen. ‘It was really hard to deal with at the beginning… especially since our home town is being shelled.

‘I am used to travelling for my normal work in technology journalism and in a way, if you can distance yourself from what is happening on the ground for a short while, sometimes you can see it as a sort of extended work trip,’ he said. ‘But when you think about it this situation could ask much longer.’

Listen to the full interview on the podcast