Deported Ukrainians stuck in Georgia: how things are now at the border

The Ukrainian embassy in Georgia has said that it is in constant contact with a group of Ukrainians who were purposefully and illegally deported by the Russian Federation through the Daryale checkpoint on the border with Georgia. According to the first secretary of the embassy, Andriy Bilyk, the diplomatic mission has already provided the victims with food, basic necessities and medicines,Radio Liberty reported.

The situation is under the control of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, the embassy in Tbilisi and other state bodies. The ministry believes that Russia's actions violate international law and are used as a tool to pressure Ukraine. The Georgian Interior Ministry, according to the diplomat, is ready to provide a "green corridor" for Ukrainians to transit as part of the evacuation.

Hunger strike at the border

Since 6 August, 15 Ukrainians have been on an indefinite hunger strike, demanding to meet with embassy representatives. In the afternoon, they met with Andriy Bilyk, but as one of the protesters, Serhiy Larko, reported, the diplomat was unable to give specific terms for their return home. The men said that they would continue their hunger strike until they received clear guarantees.

According to Novaya Gazeta Europa, Bilyk managed to receive about eight people and promised to return later. The protesters claim that the diplomat's answers were "shambolic" and did not give an understanding of further actions.

Deterioration of the situation at the Daryala point

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reports that since the end of June Russia has increased the number of deportees across the Georgian border, worsening the humanitarian situation. As of today, 96 Ukrainian citizens are in the buffer zone.

After the hunger strike was announced, Ukrainian consuls immediately left for the border crossing point, seeking access to the deportees from the Georgian side. Now they remain in constant communication with the group, in parallel coordinating evacuation routes and technical details of the Ukrainians' return home with transit countries.

According to Ukrainian diplomats, a significant part of the deportees are former prisoners convicted in the occupied territories of Ukraine and subsequently taken to Russian colonies. Many of them have been convicted of particularly serious crimes, have no documents and, according to the Georgian authorities, pose a security threat.

At the same time, the only available route for the return of such citizens to Ukraine is through Georgian territory. Without documents, they are forced to stay in the buffer zone for weeks or even months until the embassy confirms their citizenship. After that, they are issued temporary "white passports" in Tbilisi, which allows them to go home.