A Ukrainian woman who had fled Russia's military invasion and evacuated to Sapporo returned home on the 12th.


Prolonged military invasion is also affecting the future of those who continue to evacuate, for example, because if they continue to evacuate, they may lose their jobs in their hometowns.

Ukrainian Natalia Kurakova (53) will return to Japan.



On the morning of the 12th, she headed from New Chitose Airport to Narita Airport with her daughter Veronica (27), who lives in Sapporo.



Natalia relied on her daughter to evacuate from the southeastern province of Zaporizhia this April.



For the past three months, she gradually got used to life with the support of her daughter, such as studying Japanese, and in June she changed to a status of residence where she could work and stay for one year.



However, as the evacuation was prolonged, I heard that the police working in my hometown asked me if I could return to work, and that the law changed and I could lose my job if I took a long rest. Therefore, I decided to return to Japan.



In her hometown of Zaporizhia, Russian troops continue to attack missiles, and Natalia said on the 11th, "I don't want to worry about her daughter and Japan is so relieved that I will return to Ukraine. I'm scared, "he said with mixed feelings.



Her daughter, Veronica, said, "She is worried as a daughter, but she has to respect her mother's decisions."



Natalia will leave Narita Airport on the night of the 12th and return to Ukraine via neighboring Poland.

Natalia's three-month evacuation life

Natalia came to Japan on April 10th.



After traveling to neighboring Poland, I arrived at New Chitose Airport in about two weeks and reunited with her daughter Veronica.



Natalia started her life in Japan at an apartment in Sapporo provided by a private company free of charge.



The luggage packed in one suitcase is a little personal belongings, a coloring book for hobbies, and the Ukrainian folk costume "Vyshyvanka".



I brought an important item that I made with her husband.



Her daughter, who lives near her, frequently visited her, and gradually got used to her life by going out for meals and traveling with her.



I had a hard time studying Japanese, and at first I took classes online a couple of times a week, but I couldn't keep up with it and gave up.



Even so, I continued to study at my own pace by self-taught writing and learning pronunciation using the app.



Then, in June, more than two months after coming to Japan, I changed my status of residence from a short-term stay of 90 days to a status of residence that allows me to work and stay for one year.



However, as the military invasion and evacuation life became longer, Natalia became increasingly anxious.



One of them is losing the life of her hometown.



Natalia says she has been a police officer for over 15 years and she is on vacation to evacuate, but she asks if she will come back to work around May. I came to come.



She further heard that she could lose her job if she took a long break due to changes in Ukrainian law.



Natalia says it's difficult to find a stable job again at this age.



Furthermore, even if he lived in Japan as it is, he thought that it would be difficult to get a job due to language problems, so Natalia decided to return to Japan after suffering.



Another concern for Natalia is her husband, who remains in Ukraine.



His husband is a driver in a military supply unit that sends supplies to the front lines.



She still talks on the phone every day to make sure she's safe, and without the phone she's worried that she can't sleep.



Natalia said she wanted to return to Ukraine and spend time with her as a family when her husband returned to her home on her vacation, and she said, "I want her husband to end the war sooner. I want to see you. "



On the other hand, according to the information collected by her daughter Veronica on SNS etc., the Ukrainian army intercepts the missile attack by the Russian army in her hometown Zaporizhia, and the fighting continues.



Natalia gave a lecture in Sapporo on the night of the 11th before returning to Japan, saying, "To be honest, I don't want to go anywhere from Japan and I don't want to worry my daughter. Japan is very reassuring and anything. It's scary to go back to Ukraine, "he said.