KRAKOW, Poland (AP) — When Nastya Podorozhnya’s family members escaped the war in Ukraine and crossed into neighboring Poland, volunteers greeted them warmly.

Podorozhnya, 29, was already based in Poland when the conflict erupted. Yet just days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, she hurried back to Ukraine to help her sister and nieces leave the country.

Returning to Poland amid the first major wave of refugees, she saw extraordinary generosity from Polish volunteers. She also recognized a danger: Ukrainian women relying on assistance from unknown people could be exposed to human trafficking.

That realization led her to establish Martynka, a helpline and support network for Ukrainian women fleeing gender-based abuse.

Four years on, she is fighting to keep the organization operating. Money for refugee assistance is disappearing, hostility toward Ukrainians is increasing, and Poland still has no lasting integration plan. As exhaustion with the war grows, politicians are more frequently using anti-refugee attitudes for electoral advantage.

Organizations such as Martynka are experiencing the consequences. Fundraising was comparatively straightforward during the opening months of the invasion, but international donors have since shifted their attention to other crises around the world.

Martynka’s refuge, hidden inside an ordinary two-bedroom apartment in central Krakow, has accommodated more than 100 women and children. It helps women leave abusive situations and obtain medical treatment, counseling, employment and permanent housing.

“It often begins with me drinking tea with women in this kitchen. They explain what happened, and I tell them, ‘girl, same,’” Podorozhnya said during an interview at the Krakow shelter. She was referring to her own experience in 2016, when a man attempted to rape her on a street in Poland.

While Podorozhnya and her coworkers try to collect enough funding to prevent the shelter from closing, she says appeals for donations regularly provoke waves of abusive comments online.

“It happens because I am Ukrainian,” she said.

Ukrainian refugees support Poland’s economy

About 3.5 million Ukrainians entered Poland during the first weeks of the invasion, according to the United Nations. Polish residents met them at railway stations and welcomed them into their homes, while the government gave refugees access to employment and social security programs.

Poland and Ukraine share a long history of suffering under Russian aggression, and Poland continues to be one of Ukraine’s most important wartime allies.

By the close of 2022, the Ukrainian refugee population in Poland had settled at approximately 1 million. Those who remained entered the workforce quickly: More than 70% secured jobs, while a Deloitte analysis estimated that they generated 2.7% of Poland’s gross domestic product in 2024.

Beyond the refugee population, largely made up of women and children, over 1 million Ukrainians had already been living in Poland before the invasion, mainly as labor migrants.

Old historical disputes return

Refugees have increasingly faced anti-Ukrainian language. Research released this year by Olena Babakova of Warsaw’s Vistula University found that Ukrainian migrants viewed Poland’s 2025 presidential election campaign as the moment hostility sharply intensified. Anti-Ukrainian messaging became common across political parties rather than remaining confined to the far right.

Karol Nawrocki, the national-conservative candidate who ultimately became president, pledged laws giving Polish citizens priority over Ukrainians in public services. His liberal opponent, Rafał Trzaskowski, suggested limiting child support payments available to Ukrainians.

As friction grew, unresolved historical disputes between the neighboring countries emerged again.

In June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy chose to name a military unit after a Ukrainian paramilitary group accused of killing Poles during World War II, prompting anger in Poland. Nawrocki answered by revoking a state distinction previously granted to Zelenskyy, escalating the disagreement.

“This goes beyond negative attitudes. Ukrainians are encountering openly hostile exchanges and physical attacks,” Babakova said.

Polish police figures show that 180 Ukrainian nationals had become victims of crimes motivated by prejudice by mid-July. That represented a notable rise compared with 275 cases during all of 2025 and 267 in 2024.

After several reports of Ukrainians being attacked on Polish streets during the summer, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in late July that the country “must fight violence and hatred.”

Assistance for the most vulnerable is declining

Poland’s government has gradually reduced support for Ukrainian refugees, arguing that many have now established stable lives.

The country’s ombudsman has cautioned that these policy changes place an unequal burden on those most at risk, including mothers raising several children alone, elderly people and individuals with disabilities or long-term illnesses. Single mothers make up a large share of the refugee community because most Ukrainian men of military age, from 23 to 60, cannot leave Ukraine.

Yuliia Repenko of the Ukrainian House said her nonprofit organization, which assists Ukrainians, was “increasingly helping people who face an especially high risk of exclusion.”

The Polish government has defended the reduction in refugee assistance. Katarzyna Nowakowska, deputy minister for family, labor and social policy, said the state continues to provide direct support to the most vulnerable applicants, while other refugees requiring help should contact social services.

International assistance has also fallen as Poland has reduced its programs, leaving refugees with fewer alternatives. Figures from the U.N. refugee agency indicate that international donor funding for Ukrainians has steadily declined since 2022. Only half of the agency’s assessed requirements have been covered this year, compared with 94% in 2022.

“Donors have turned their attention away from Ukrainian refugees, although the war has not ended,” said Sonia Novytska, who works on Martynka’s helpline. “If anything, it is now more deadly than it was at the beginning.”

Martynka handled roughly 1,800 requests for assistance last year, and staff members anticipate an increase, Novytska said. The helpline now hears not only from survivors of violence but also from mothers unable to secure enough food or safe accommodation for their children.

“Polish people should understand that we are assisting those who could otherwise end up homeless in their own communities, or turn to substance abuse because despair and poverty leave them unable to cope,” Podorozhnya said.

“Martynka is carrying out work that should be done by the Polish state,” she said.