'Hard to feel festive' says Ukrainian refugee

Maria Romanenko left Ukraine with her Mancunian boyfriend three years ago

A Ukrainian journalist who settled in Manchester after fleeing her homeland said she was struggling to be "in a festive mood" as she marks her third Christmas in the UK.

Maria Romanenko, 32, fled the Kyiv region for the north west of England shortly after the Russian invasion began on 24 February 2022 alongside her Mancunian partner Jez Myers.

The couple made a perilous journey to the Polish border where they had to wait four days before Maria was permitted to enter the UK and the pair arrived on 2 March 2022.

Ms Romanenko said Christmas and New Year's Eve can be a reminder of all she left behind, including loved ones she "never got to say goodbye to".

The journalist has run free Ukrainian language cultural tours of Liverpool

These include her grandmother Maria, who died at the age of 91 on Christmas Day in 2022.

"When I was fleeing it was a very quick decision - I couldn't really see my family because I was worried for my safety," Ms Romanenko said.

"I never got to say goodbye to her and a few months later I found out that she passed away.

"It reminds me that I won't be with the other members of my family, so my father and my brother - who are in Ukraine, and I will also not be able to celebrate the festive period with my colleagues who were killed by the Russians."

'Another milestone'

Ms Romanenko, a reporter, said she never thought she would be away from her country for so long.

Describing her third Christmas in the UK as "another milestone", she said: "I think it is the same for every Ukrainian".

She added: "It's very difficult to be in a festive mood when you know that your friends and family could be killed but I'm trying to feel positive."

Asked about what she wants to see from the UK government in 2025, Ms Romanenko said she wanted to see her country backed "in the ways that Ukraine is asking for, to provide all the weapons that they are able to provide".

She added: "We need to pressure Russia to stop thinking that they can get away with this behaviour.

"So just continue to support Ukraine and give Ukraine more defence weapons because without those we can't really defend ourselves."