Anu Viltrop News Today

The Estonian Refugee Council and Friends of Mariupol NGO, which operates in Narva and Tallinn, have signed a cooperation agreement to ensure help for Ukrainians in transit.

It is wonderful that so many people in Estonia have taken initiative and have reached out to help the Ukrainian refugees without hesitation. However, in a communication born out of empathy and goodwill, the purpose and limits of such assistance should be agreed upon from the start in order to avoid hidden dangers and causing harm instead of good, writes Anu Viltrop from the Estonian Refugee Council.

Estonia's city of good thoughts welcomes Ukrainian refugees, Michael Cole writes.

As of Sunday, Estonia has received more than 24,000 refugees from Ukraine. While Estonia has managed to handle their reception and provide them with initial accommodations, finding more permanent housing for the refugees is proving to be a more complicated challenge. The state is looking at options on the rental market, from individuals offering housing as well as from state- and local government-owned housing stock.

The government has called for greater centralization and coordination of the processing and accommodation of people fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine, involving established aid organizations, and away from active volunteering from private citizens.

A part of people fleeing the war in Ukraine have already found work in Estonia. While hundreds of wanted ads have been posted, employers want the chance to hire refugees on the same grounds as permanent residents. That said, refugees are expected to do different things than people who have come to work in Estonia from Ukraine before.

Estonia, the Tallinn branch of the Estonian Red Cross grows mountains of bags of items for Ukrainians every day...