The coordinator for humanitarian issues Matthias Shmale, as well as the head of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian issues (UKGV) in the country of Andrea de Domenico meet with the residents of Kharkov. Interview | Ukraine: How humanitarian support for the UN and its partners helps peaceful Ukrainians to survive Peace and security in the conditions of a full -scale war, which has been going on for more than three years, the population of Ukraine almost constantly lives under shelling. Drinking, artillery shots, destroyed houses and schools, lack of water and warmth – everyday reality for millions of people. The head of the Ukrainian representative office of the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (VSGV) Andrea de Domenico told about the most acute problems in the humanitarian sphere and the residents of Ukraine in an interview with the UN news service. The interview is confined to the week of the protection of the civilian population. 60 ~ strong > Andrea de Domenico: main humanitarian fears are associated, first of all, with victims among the civilian population and attacks on civilian infrastructure objects – especially for residential buildings, hospitals and other critical objects. In April alone, 209 people were killed and more than 1100 were injured – this is the highest indicator since September 2024. A particularly alarming situation has developed on the front line, where civilians are constantly subjected to air, shelling and attacks of drones. This leads not only to death and injuries, but also to long -term psychological injuries – after all, the war has been going on for more than three years. The issue of access to basic services – medical care, water, electricity, heating is also acute. It is especially difficult in the winter period, and this applies to both front-line regions and the rear-due to the nature of the modern war and the applied technologies. ~ 60 > special concern are vulnerable groups-children, elderly people and people with disability. For example, last week in the Sumy region there was a blow of a drone on a bus that evacuated people from the war zone near the village of Belopolieu – nine people were killed, including the whole family: mother, father and daughter. Most of the dead were elderly people. The threat to civilians is preserved despite the ongoing diplomatic efforts and negotiations. 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 ~ The head of the Ukrainian representative office of the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian issues (VSGV) Andrea de Domenico. The government is forced to expand the zones of mandatory evacuation, since the front line is shifted. Hundreds of partners work in the field of protection of the population, coordination is carried out by the protection cluster under the leadership of the UN UN (UN Office for Refugees]. The focus is security, the right to life, the protection of the elderly and people with disabilities, social assistance, protection of children, housing issues, as well as the availability of documents. Many who are evacuated do not have time to take documents with them – and without them it is impossible to get either social or humanitarian help. I met such people at the advanced and in temporary accommodation centers. ~ 60 > one of the features of this war was the large -scale use of drones – we did not see such technologies in previous conflicts. Donetsk, Sumy, Kharkov, Kherson, Zaporizhzhya and Nikolaev regions are especially suffered – there people live under a constant threat and are forced to leave at home. 62 ~ ~ 60 > 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 ~Recently I met a family evacuating from the front line – they lived only 15 kilometers from the border in the Sumy region. Father said: “It is unlikely that we can return.” People lose hope. It is especially difficult for children: they have accumulated not only psychological injuries, but also serious gaps in education. Many have not go to school for five or six years-because of pandemia and war. 60 > World Health Organization recently reported that 46 percent of Ukrainians have psychological problems, and 41 percent diagnosed mental health-this is very high and alarming. indicator 60 ~ p > service & nbsp; UN news: how the humanitarian situation has changed since the beginning of a full -scale invasion ? can be said that the population is better prepared for today Crisis ?~ 60 > Andrea de Domenico: Forced – yes. People have learned to survive in war. Humanitarian organizations significantly strengthened their presence, worked out mechanisms – evacuation, monetary assistance, psychological support. Local NGOs play a particularly important role – they have gone from ordinary civil society organizations to professional humanitarian structures. They are the basis of our work on the front line. The government also plays an important role in responding to air strikes – its services are the first to arrive at the place, and we support their actions. 60 > however, the scale and unpredictability of attacks do not allow you to feel safe. People, of course, are more aware, but the combination of destruction, movements and instability undermines their ability to respond. ~ 60 > additional difficulty this year was a lack of funding. We defined almost 13 million people in Ukraine as needing help-this is 36 percent of the population, but due to lack of funds, we can only help 4.8 million. ~ >~ 60 > 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 > 62 ~ 62UN news service: how to restriction of access affects your ability to protect civilians ?~ 60 >~ 60 >~ 60 > Andrea de Domenico: if there is no Access – no help. Unfortunately, this is such a simple answer. This directly affects the safety and protection of civilians, especially in front -line areas. We are faced with attacks on humanitarian missions: from January 109 incidents have been recorded – attacks on staff, restrictions on movement, logistics problems. Over the past two months, two humanitarian workers have been killed, 16 were injured. There were 14 attacks on densely populated areas, offices, warehouses and residential premises of humanitarian organizations were affected. The use of drones with a distant radius increased the risk zone – even remote areas now suffer. To this adds administrative difficulties. For example, mobilization makes it difficult to work, because many employees, especially local ones, can be drafted into the army, and we lose trained personnel. ~ ~ > 62 ~ in the occupied territories is extremely limited in the occupied territories – we get only fragmentary information, but we know that there are serious problems with humanitarian help. 60 > we continue to insist on unhindered access, as required by international humanitarian law. This should not be the subject of choice – this is the adopted obligation. But, unfortunately, in many conflicts it is ignored. We are conducting humanitarian diplomacy to achieve compliance with these norms. 60 ~ p > UN news service: you drive around Ukraine, you are in front -line areas. You can share the stories of ordinary people with whom you meet on these trips ?~ 60 > ~ 60 > 62 > 62 > 62 ~Andrea de Domenico: the most amazing is the number of elderly people who suffered from the conflict. Young people left at the very beginning – they had strength and resources. And the elderly remained. For example, I met a woman named Nadia – which, by the way, means “hope”. She lives in a transit center, the conditions there are difficult, but she does not want to go further – she wants to be as close as possible to her native village. Her family is trying to take her abroad, but she refuses. And there are many such stories. ~ 60 > there are those who are left to their homes to the last, even without electricity, water, food, and medical care – because they cannot leave their native places. Their roots are too deeply connected with this land. It is for them that we try to help first of all. ~ 60 > UN news service: what message you would like to send a civilian for civil protection week population ? 60 > Andrea de Domenico: I have three main messages. The first is to observe international humanitarian law is necessarily, this is the only way to maintain humanity and protect civilians. The second – attacks on civilian facilities, including houses, hospitals, schools and power systems, must be stopped. And the third – international solidarity is needed. Financial and political support for humanitarian aid should be preserved – millions of lives depend on this.