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In Warsaw, a Network of Support Greets Those Crossing the Polish Border

WARSAW — Ilona Yurchenkov, 28, sits on a black chair in a sprawling expo center on the outskirts of Warsaw, a Yankees hat on her head and her cat, Mars, in a pet carrier beside her. She left her home in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv when fighting began there, and she has been on the road for days.

“Today, I had a long journey from the border to here, but all the way I feel people have helped me,” she said, adding that a woman had just shown her how to get to the veterinarian to have Mars checked. Now, she was waiting for a bus to continue on to Denmark.

She is one of 10,000 people who are using the expo center as a stop-off point after it was hastily set up in the last three weeks to provide support for people fleeing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. More than two million people have crossed the border into Poland, the United Nations confirmed late last week.

The flow of people has been enabled by the fact that the European Union has allowed Ukrainians fleeing the war to move across borders without visas and stay for up to three years, circumventing the often lengthy asylum process that refugees from elsewhere in the world face when entering the bloc.

But, so far, there are no refugee camps in Poland, thanks in some part to grass roots efforts by charities, businesses, individuals and local officials that pooled their resources to face the logistical challenge of providing for so many people so quickly and create places like the one at the expo center.

Many of those who come here to the Polish capital, like Ms. Yurchenkov, will continue on to other countries — some who will meet up with friends and others who will rely on the kindness of strangers offering a place to stay. For now, they need shelter, food and somewhere to sleep after hours or days on the road.

Jakub Mroczkowski, a representative for the regional government, which helped organize the reception site, said that most of the visitors have stayed for a day or two to rest and have a hot meal before moving on. Some 25,000 people have come through the site so far.

It is only at half its capacity, but he expects it will become crowded as the humanitarian situation worsens.

“We should be preparing for a long march,” Mr. Mroczkowski said, but, he added, he was amazed to see how many people from all over Europe had converged here and were dedicated to offering help.

Most of the people providing aid are volunteers, charity workers, or the staff of the expo center. Inside there are play areas for children, a medical clinic, showers, toilets, charging stations and a canteen. Donated clothes, baby strollers, wheelchairs, diapers, pet carriers and other necessities are piled up in one corner.

Russia-Ukraine War: Key Developments


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Mariupol refuses to yield. Ukraine rejected Russia’s demand to surrender the embattled southern port city, where an estimated 300,000 people remain trapped. In a rare firsthand account on social media, a resident who escaped described what she called a living “hell.”

A bloody stalemate. With the invasion stalled, few signs of progress on peace talks and the war appearing to have reached a stalemate, Russia is turning to deadlier and blunter methods, including a missile strike that reduced a Kyiv shopping mall to a smoldering ruin.

Biden’s diplomatic push. President Biden will travel to Europe for talks with NATO allies this week, in his most direct effort yet to rally opposition to the invasion. In a call with Western leaders ahead of his trip, he assailed Russia’s attacks on civilians and discussed providing assistance to refugees.

One area has become a makeshift bus depot, with screens listing destinations where people can take free buses.

Good Samaritans from across Europe are also bringing aid in, including a Hindu charity group from Britain that arrived on Friday with a truck packed with supplies. The group, from a temple called Swaminarayan Mandir, in northwestern England, felt drawn to find a way to help.

It had reached out to a local businesswoman woman, Kamilia Gorniak, who had been organizing donations on social media and had a warehouse where supplies could be stored. Then she connected the group with the expo center.

Ms. Gorniak said she felt proud to be Polish when she saw the countless donations, volunteers and those who have offered up spare rooms.

“In this critical situation, we gathered together and, really, I don’t know anyone who is not helping,” she said.

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