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ABOUT UKRAINE CHAIN
We have worked in northern Romania since 1990, and on the basis of our experience and contacts, we saw the possibility to create links between what state and other aid organisations offer, and create a chain which starts in war-torn Ukraine, and ends in a safe, medium-term home for Ukrainians fleeing the conflict. As time went on, and the flow of refugees diminished, that mission evolved into supporting internally displaced persons within Ukraine, and then, since 2023, into a mission to support people still living close to the front line and under bombardment.
Charity no. 1208811
Our multi-national team
Our partners, a church at Ciudei in SW Ukraine, in combination with a Romanian church at Beclean, near Cluj in the north of that country, with the support of Ukraine Chain have made many aid trips to the Donbas now – eighty-five at the last count. The title of the combined venture is ‘A Step towards Salvation’. In Romanian, ‘Un Pas spre Salvare’, and in Ukrainian, ‘Krok do Spacinnya’. The abbreviation used here is ‘AStS’. AStS is an informal organisation in which everyone is a volunteer and most have a chaplaincy role. It transports material aid to communities under bombardment in the Donbas, but even more importantly, visits and delivers moral and spiritual support to those who exist in dire circumstances, in danger and in fear. Even if a cease-fire is declared in the near future, the needs noted below will continue, maybe for a considerable time.
MORAL AND SPIRITUAL SUPPORT
We are not just in the business of distributing material aid. Above all, we seek to support the people we serve morally and spiritually. When we can, we deliver our parcels direct to households, and make a point of sitting down with individuals and families, listening to their problems and praying with them.
We have a stock of bibles printed in Ukrainian, and make these available to both civilians and soldiery. Demand is strong.
Local Sourcing and Distribution
The first action of international aid is often to source food and other materials in the donor country, and transport them to where the need is. This, by its very nature, is expensive and time-consuming. It’s better to buy what is needed as close to the distribution point as possible.We are sometimes asked, “when is the next van going out?”, but we send no vans from the UK. Instead, we are sourcing bulk food stuffs in Ukraine, and other goods in Ukraine and Romania, and developing a local distribution system in the besieged towns of the Donbas, with the aim of making staple foods and other necessities available weekly.
Supporting the men of Ukraine who serve in the army
90% of Ukrainian men are either in the army or are eligible for call-up. The situation on the front is so severe that tours of duty are three years in duration, and little leave is available.
As a charity, Ukraine Chain cannot concern itself with the military objectives of the Ukrainian state, though it can and does provide moral support to those who are serving in the army.
We are in close touch with Ukrainian military chaplains in the Donetsk Oblast (region). The situation they face is very severe, as 90% of Ukrainian men aged 25 – 60 are eligible for call-up, if not already serving in the army. A tour of duty is three years, and there is little leave for more than a couple of days away from the front line. They therefore form a very large needy group, being typically exhausted, traumatised and in some cases in a situation of grave moral self-doubt, for instance if they have killed in the course of their duties and find it hard to live with themselves as a consequence.
A vehicle (a second-hand Lada) has been supplied by AStS to an Orthodox chaplain, Ruslan, and this enables him to be more effective in getting to see the troops who are his responsibility – one brigade composed of 3-6 battalions.
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CONTACT
Withy Copse
Horsepond Road
Kidmore End
RG4 9HN
07768791429