By Olha Chepil | 2026-05-01

Kyiv has air raid sirens, drone strikes, and rolling blackouts. It also has new residents. While the war pushed millions of Ukrainians out of their country, a quieter movement has been going in the opposite direction: foreigners arriving and staying. Some come for love. Some come for purpose. One Austrian historian bought an apartment on Khreshchatyk.

What draws people to a country under bombardment? The answer, it turns out, is not complicated. They want to be part of something real.

Love under the sirens

Cerise Sudry-Le Dû, a French freelance journalist, walks through Kyiv's Independence Square with a large camera and no apparent hesitation. She has spent more time in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion than she has in France.

"Sometimes I'm afraid because Kyiv isn't the only place where I spend time. I also go to Donbas and Kharkiv. But that's the paradox of it all: despite the war, it's surprisingly easy to live in Kyiv, and the people here are so open and interesting that there's always something to talk about with them," Sudry-Le Dû told Kontur.

She came to Ukraine two years ago to interview a national guardsman from Luhansk. The interview became a relationship. Now she lives with him in Kyiv and travels to the front to file reports for the foreign press.

On a recent weekend, she was at Independence Square documenting a makeshift memorial -- photos of fallen soldiers propped up alongside small solar panels that charge during the day and glow through the night. "It's very moving," she said. "Relatives put them there to symbolize the eternal memory of the fallen heroes."

Her mornings might start in a café. They might end in a shelter. She has made her peace with that.

History, up close

Gregor Razumovsky is an Austrian historian, political analyst, and civic activist. He is also a direct descendant of Kyrill Razumovsky, the last Ukrainian hetman -- the Cossack leader who governed the region in the 18th century. Since the late 1980s, Razumovsky has worked to promote Ukrainian interests in Europe, pushing back against Russian propaganda and running cultural and political initiatives.

When the full-scale war began, his trips to Kyiv became more frequent. In 2023, he bought an apartment in the city center, overlooking Khreshchatyk. He spent last winter there on the same terms as everyone else -- no power, no heat.

"I see these amazing people who are taking these risks every day. How could I be less brave than them? If I'm killed in Ukraine, I want to be buried where my ancestor is buried, in Baturyn," Razumovsky told Kontur.

In February, he traveled to the front-line city of Kramatorsk, where he supported Ukrainian soldiers. An aerial bomb struck while he was sleeping on a sofa.

"It was more annoying than scary," he said.

Razumovsky believes Ukraine's path to full European Union (EU) membership is the only real security guarantee. He is blunt about wanting a formal role in making that happen.

"I could seriously and organically cooperate with decision-makers in all those countries," he said, pointing to his fluency in English, French, and German and deep familiarity with British, French, Austrian and German political culture.

Presence as a statement

The pattern extends well beyond journalists and historians. American actor Sean Penn skipped his own Oscar ceremony this year to travel to Ukraine instead -- a deliberate choice, according to media reports, to show support through presence rather than words. Penn previously gave one of his Oscar statuettes to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, pledging not to take it back until the war ends.

Around 10,000 foreign volunteers from 75 countries have signed contracts with the Ukrainian military, according to the Ukrainian command. About 600 foreigners join the army every month.

Ihor Reiterovich, head of political and legal programs at the Ukrainian Center of Social Development, says the motivation goes beyond solidarity. Ukraine is a place where people see a fight for freedom and a chance to get involved.

"Here there is drive and challenges every day. For them this is also an opportunity to be part of something big," Reiterovich told Kontur.

He adds that foreigners also see practical opportunity. Launching a business or volunteer initiative is easier in Ukraine than in many Western countries, and foreigners are bringing standards of transparency that are reshaping Ukrainian civil society from the inside.

"When there are foreigners in Ukraine -- from Hollywood stars to aristocrats and volunteers -- that erases the line between 'our' and 'someone else's' war once and for all," Reiterovich said.