Since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022, the UN and its partners have provided support to those in need, complementing the Government’s assistance. This includes helping city residents facing constant drone and missile attacks, communities near the frontline, and those evacuated from danger.
“I am speaking of internally displaced people who’ve been in collective sites for two, three years; I’m speaking of older people and people with limited mobility,” said Matthias Schmale, the UN’s top aid official in Ukraine, outlining some of the priorities of Tuesday’s appeal.
According to media reports and official information from Ukrainian authorities, in the past week alone, Russian forces launched nearly 1,100 attack drones against Ukraine, more than 890 guided aerial bombs, and at least 50 missiles of various types — including ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as an Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile targeting Lviv in western Ukraine, near the Polish border.
In addition to core aid relief like food, healthcare, shelter, protection, and cash assistance, other key aims of Tuesday’s funding appeal include supporting the evacuation of people in imminent danger – “heroic work near the front line”, Mr. Schmale said, referring to the hundreds of UN-supported partners conducting this lifesaving work.
Frontline needs
Funding is needed to assist civil society partners responding to military strikes countrywide, primarily within 50 kilometers of the frontline. This includes helping farmers in a war zone and cancer patients whose medicine access is disrupted by healthcare-impacting attacks.
“We want to continue supporting as best as we can [but] all of this needs funding,” Mr. Schmale said. He highlighted the “enormous civilian suffering” across Ukraine, particularly as temperatures drop to minus 15°C in Kyiv – “an emergency within an emergency” that will likely require further funding from the international community in addition to Tuesday’s appeal, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator noted.
“We appeal in particular to the international community, to UN Member States, to other donors, to maintain their solidarity with Ukraine and to express that in the form of financial support for the work we plan to continue,” he said.
Speaking in Kyiv at the launch of the appeal, Mr. Schmale highlighted an update from the UN human rights monitoring team indicating that 2025 was the deadliest year for civilians since 2022, with more than 2,500 civilians killed and more than 12,000 injured.
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