Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania face problems with housing, the language barrier and employment, according to a survey commissioned by the Department of National Minorities.
The biggest problem for Ukrainian refugees is housing (28.2 percent), language (20.3 percent), employment (14.4 percent), financial difficulties (12.9 percent), and moral and psychological issues (11.9 percent).
Ukrainians in Lithuania also have problems accessing healthcare, schools and kindergartens, and are faced with a lack of information.
The survey found that more than 40 percent of Lithuanians fully agree that Lithuania should accept as many refugees from Ukraine as possible and must help them.
“The Lithuanian public very strongly supports our view that we should accept as many refugees from Ukraine as possible,” Vida Montvydaitė, head of the Department of National Minorities, told a press conference on Thursday.
In the survey, 43.8 percent of the respondents agreed that refugees from Ukraine are closer to them than refugees from other countries.
“This would indicate an understanding of a common enemy,” Montvydaitė said, commenting that many Lithuanians believe their country would be attacked by Russia unless Ukraine won the war.
“Therefore, there is a lot of support; there are old historical ties; there is a threat to national security,” she said.
Asked about relations between different groups in the Lithuanian population, 27.1 percent said they were good, while 41.1 expressed ambivalence.
The majority of Ukrainians, 87.6 percent, said they have not experienced discrimination or insults in Lithuania because of their nationality or language, and the majority said they feel that Lithuanians have a positive attitude toward them.
Around half, 54.5 percent. of Ukrainians said their command of Lithuanian is minimal and 38.1 percent said they have no command of the language at all.
What Ukrainians like most about Lithuania is the care and sense of security, support and social assistance, housing, work, access to education, and residence permits.
Sixty-four percent of Ukrainians feel the need to be part of the Ukrainian community in Lithuania, 12.9 percent are already involved in community activities, and 26.2 percent would like to participate. Another 24.9 percent of respondents said they would like to, but there is a lack of information/opportunities.
While living in Lithuania, 68.8 percent of Ukrainians said they were following news in Ukraine. Three-fourths (75.2 percent) maintain social contacts with Ukraine and communicate with relatives and friends. However, 6.4 percent said their interest has decreased.
The majority of the polled Ukrainian refugees, 72.3 percent, said they would like to vote in the next Ukrainian presidential and parliamentary elections while abroad.
The pollster Vilmorus surveyed 1,003 Lithuanian adults and 202 adult refugees from Ukraine between February and April.
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