Between the European Union and Russia: Displacement, State Building and Religious Freedom in Ukraine

This project will further the practical and theoretical understandings of the relationship between state building, forced displacement and violations of religious freedom, both in Ukraine and in the areas which have accepted refugees from Ukraine.
The events following the Russian invasion of Ukraine has resulted in the biggest displacement of people in post-Second World War history. Since the conflict began in February of 2022, 7,278,696 Ukrainians have been displaced across Europe (UNHCR, 2017). The recipients of these refugees have been diverse, with a mixture of internal displacement, displacement to Ukraine's allies in Europe, some evacuation to Russia, and a supply of returning refugees to major cities (BBC News, 2022).
Russia's invasion has not just been territorial, but also spiritual. Following from the persecutions and restrictions on religious freedoms in occupied Crimea, Russian forces have vandalised important Orthodox sites, such as those at Sviatohirsk Lavra. Meanwhile, religious organisations continue to play an important role both in Ukraine and in host communities, and create support networks which transcend local, regional and international factors. This community building represents what Beichelt and Worschech (2016, p.16) would identify as 'Spatial' and 'Societal' transnationalisms: fluidity of nationhood which supersedes the bounds of physical and political boundaries.
As such, two key phenomena are to be addressed. Firstly, this research seeks to understand how the relationship between politics and religion is perceived and conceptualised. Secondly, we aim to further understand how religious discourses, and discourses around immigration, inform and are informed by both the discourses and real-world outcomes of state building and human rights violations. To interpret these phenomena, realist and constructivist perspectives will be relied upon.
The project addresses the following questions:
1. How does forced displacement impact upon the consolidation and development of state institutions in Ukraine?
2. What are the mechanisms of religious support towards forced displacement?
3. How do violations of religious freedom impact upon state-building processes and relations between Ukraine, the European Union and Russia?
The project draws on qualitative and quantitative data collected with refugees, academic organisations, state officials and religious organisations. Fieldwork was originally planned to take place in Kharkiv and Kiev, prior to the invasion. Instead, fieldwork will take place in Eastern European areas that have accepted large numbers of Ukrainian refugees, such as Poland and Romania. The project will collect 30 interviews with refugees, academics, religious bodies and state officials.
Expanding the literature on displacement, state building and religion, and the relationships between these, are an expected outcome of this research. This should inform awareness and debate in the academic, legal and policymaking fields. The focus on human rights are of direct importance to those who are involved in supporting, monitoring and understanding displaced people, including faith-based organisations and local and national governments. The findings of this research will be disseminated via policy reports, journal articles and conference presentations.




BBC News (2022), How many Ukrainian refugees are there and where have they gone?, at https://www.bbc.com/news/world-60555472
Leustean, L.N., 2021. When States Fail: The Politics of Orthodox Churches, Forced Displacement and Humanitarian Structures in Serbia and Ukraine. Journal of Refugee Studies, 34(2), pp.1923-1945.
UNHCR (2022), Ukraine Refugee Situation, at https://data.unhcr.org/en/situations/ukraine
Beichelt, T. and Worschech, S. eds., 2016. Transnational Ukraine?: Networks and Ties that Influence (d) Contemporary Ukraine. Columbia University Press.