Ukraine Protection Analysis Update

3.5 years after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation on 24 February 2022, the protection environment in Ukraine has continuously been impacted by the conflict, with implications stretching beyond the emergency and affecting the resilience of Ukrainian society. The situation along the frontline has shifted with Russian Armed Forces gaining territory resulting in further displacement. The escalation in the Russian Armed Forces’ use of drones all over Ukraine has expanded the threat to civilian populations and humanitarian workers. With up to 20% of Ukraine occupied by Russian Armed Forces, the population living in these areas are increasingly isolated and face a human rights crisis, including changes in Russian policy towards the Occupied Territory. Protection actors have documented the significant strain of the war on the civilian population in Ukraine. In one survey, 55% of people report that they do not feel safe. Thirty-eight percent of people report they are separated from one or more family members, and 43% report a mental health and psychosocial safety concerns.

There have been notable changes in the Ukrainian ministries responsible for displacement and the Government’s Strategy of State Policy on Internal Displacement is due to expire at the end of 2025. These changes come at a time when the impact of the reduction of international financial assistance to humanitarian actors in Ukraine is beginning to take hold. With no quick end to the conflict, and its impact on civilian life in Ukraine, those actors providing a response to affected people find themselves at cross-roads in how to provide principled, sustainable and effective assistance to those in need.

In addition to protection of civilians’ concerns highlighted in the context, protection risks requiring immediate attention in the period covered by this analysis are:

1. Restrictions to Freedom of Movement, Forced Displacement and Returns under Adverse Conditions  
2. Children’s Physical and Psychosocial Safety and Well-Being Threatened by Compounded Risks
3. Gender-Based Violence
4. Presence of Explosive Ordnance
5. Impediments and Restrictions to Access to Legal Identity, Remedies and Justice, including Housing Land and Property Rights