A Kyiv Independent investigation found Ukrainians in Poland, Germany and Czechia are increasingly facing aggression, from insults on public transport to knife attacks.
Ukrainian refugees and activists reported a wide range of incidents. Vladyslava Vorobiova, co-founder of the organization Vitsche in Berlin, described people spitting and shouting at activists at pro-Ukraine rallies. In one incident, a man approached them with a knife before cutting his arms and chest; police did not log the incident.
In Prague, Ukrainian refugee Kateryna Lebed was assaulted by a man who kicked and threw her onto the road after shouting 'Ukrainian whores!' The attacker received a 20-month prison sentence. In Warsaw, university teacher Oleksandra Iwaniuk was verbally abused on a tram while speaking Ukrainian, and said she was struck by the reaction, or lack of reaction, from other passengers.
The initial wave of support for Ukrainian refugees that followed Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022 has, the investigation finds, eroded significantly. Official statistics show thousands of logged crimes against Ukrainians in Germany since the invasion, though human rights activist Oleksandra Bienert said the data is far from complete because many incidents go unreported or unregistered. In Czechia, the human rights organization In Iustitia documented 129 anti-Ukrainian attacks as of early 2026, roughly half of all hate-motivated violent incidents recorded in the country. A PAQ Research study cited by In Iustitia head Klara Kalibova found 57 percent of Ukrainians who arrived in Czechia had experienced verbal abuse and 5 percent physical attacks.
In each of the three countries, politicians have made grievances against Ukraine and Ukrainians part of their political agenda. In Germany, AfD co-chair Tino Chrupalla has repeatedly claimed that 700,000 Ukrainians in Germany do not work and receive Bürgergeld, a claim repeatedly debunked by German fact-checkers and contradicted by official statistics. In Czechia, Andrej Babis repeatedly claimed Ukrainian refugees placed an excessive burden on the state budget during the 2025 election campaign, which he won; speaker Tomio Okamura removed the Ukrainian flag from parliament. In Poland, Karol Nawrocki posted a campaign video captioned 'Ukrainians, to the back of the line.'
An analysis of approximately 98,000 posts on X by the Kyiv Independent's data team found the same narratives circulating online that are used by politicians, including claims of Ukrainians bringing crime, burdening social systems, and historical accusations related to Nazism.
Professor Rafal Pankowski of Civitas University in Warsaw told the Kyiv Independent the link between hate speech and physical aggression is obvious, citing a case in Slupsk where a teacher's anti-Ukrainian rhetoric was followed by Ukrainian students being beaten. Researcher Susan Benesch, founder of the Dangerous Speech Project, said politicians bear a 'very strong moral responsibility' if supporters take their words as a call for violence, even when they do not explicitly call for it, though they may not have legal responsibility.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Challenges European unity and solidarity in supporting Ukraine against Russian aggression.
- Highlights the practical consequences of unchecked hate speech for a vulnerable population of millions of refugees.
- Demonstrates a repeatable playbook of linking online disinformation, political opportunism, and real-world violence.
Background
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 created Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. Poland, Germany, and Czechia accepted the highest numbers of Ukrainian refugees. The Kyiv Independent's investigation examines the erosion of the initial public goodwill into a climate of hostility.
Key Perspectives
Ukrainian refugees and activists: Report escalating verbal and physical attacks, a growing fear of speaking Ukrainian in public, and a lack of trust in authorities to protect them.
Politicians (AfD, Babis, Okamura, Nawrocki): Frame Ukrainians as a burden on welfare and social systems, a threat to national security and identity, and a source of crime.
Human rights experts (Pankowski, Benesch, Kalibova): Draw a direct causal link between the amplification of dangerous speech by political figures and the spike in physical violence against Ukrainians in the community.
What to Watch
- Further normalization of anti-minority rhetoric in upcoming Central European elections.
- Potential for interventions by European Union institutions to protect Ukrainian refugees under hate speech and anti-discrimination laws.
- Shift in Ukrainian government and civil society approaches to protecting citizens abroad.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
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- SupportedAnti-Ukrainian hate is rising across Central Europe alongside political rhetoric.Kyiv Independent: “Today, aggression against Ukrainians is increasingly common in those EU countries that have taken in the largest numbers of Ukrainian refugees — Poland, Germany, and Czechia.”
- SupportedThe Kyiv Independent investigation found online narratives are amplified by popular local politicians.Kyiv Independent: “Journalists at the Kyiv Independent analyzed tens of thousands of posts on X and found that the same narratives circulating online are picked up and amplified by popular local politicians.”
- SupportedUkrainians in Poland, Germany and Czechia are increasingly facing aggression ranging from public-transport insults to knife attacks.Kyiv Independent: “Ukrainians in the three EU countries that have taken in the largest numbers of Ukrainian refugees are increasingly facing aggression — from insults on public transport to knife attacks.”
- SupportedIn Berlin, a man approached activists with a knife, cut his arms and chest, and police did not log the incident.Kyiv Independent: “When the attacker realized the activists had noticed the knife, he began cutting his arms and chest and dropped to his knees. [...] it later turned out that the officers had not logged the incident.”
- SupportedLebed said the attacker shouted, “Ukrainian whores!”Kyiv Independent: ““He shouted, 'Ukrainian whores!' That's the first thing I heard,” Lebed said.”
- SupportedThe Prague attacker received a 20-month prison sentence for assaulting Lebed.Kyiv Independent: “The attacker, Patrik Slastan, was identified, arrested, and sentenced to 20 months in prison for assaulting Lebed.”
- Partly supportedThe initial wave of support for Ukrainian refugees has eroded significantly.Kyiv Independent: “In the first months of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian refugees in EU countries were met with a wave of support that began right at the border. Today, aggression against Ukrainians is increasingly common”
- SupportedOfficial statistics show thousands of crimes against Ukrainians were logged in Germany since the invasion.Kyiv Independent: “Statistics that the Kyiv Independent requested from Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office showed that thousands of crimes against Ukrainians had been logged in the country since Feb. 24, 2022.”
- SupportedIn Czechia, In Iustitia documented 129 anti-Ukrainian attacks as of early 2026, roughly half of the country's recorded hate-motivated violent incidents.Kyiv Independent: “In Czechia, the human rights organization In Iustitia had documented 129 anti-Ukrainian attacks since 2022 as of early 2026 — roughly half of all hate-motivated violent incidents recorded in the country.”
- SupportedChrupalla repeatedly claimed that 700,000 Ukrainians in Germany do not work and receive Bürgergeld.Kyiv Independent: “The party's other co-chair, Tino Chrupalla, regularly claims that 700,000 Ukrainians in Germany do not work and receive Buergergeld, Germany's basic welfare benefit.”
- SupportedThe Kyiv Independent's analysis of about 98,000 X posts found the same narratives online as those used by politicians.Kyiv Independent: “From those, they filtered 98,000 posts “that we considered substantive — meaning they actually contained meaningful content,” data analyst Denys Hubashov said. The narratives in these posts were identified by an AI model”
- SupportedBenesch said politicians have a “very strong moral responsibility” if supporters take their words as a call for violence, even without an explicit call, though they may not have legal responsibility.Kyiv Independent: “this “should not exonerate that person of at least a very strong moral responsibility, though they may not have a legal one.””