Abstract. Drawing on theo­re­tical frame­works from social move­ment studies, this article inves­ti­gates the mobi­li­za­tion of the Ukrai­nian diaspora in the first 2 years of the full-scale aggres­sion of Russia against Ukraine. Based on desk research and in-depth inter­views with acti­vists from Ukrai­nian orga­ni­za­tions in France and Poland, the analysis demons­trates that, despite different poli­tical oppor­tu­ni­ties, the Ukrai­nian commu­ni­ties rein­forced their poli­tical posi­tion in rela­tion to the insti­tu­tions of resi­dence coun­tries and gained new spheres of influence in the respec­tive national arenas. Pre-exis­ting mobi­li­zing struc­tures and prac­tices, mostly based on the Euro­maidan legacy, faci­li­tated the achie­ve­ment of far-reaching objec­tives, the coor­di­na­tion of actions, and the inte­gra­tion of grass-root forms of acti­vism within the commu­nity. This was framed by a sense of unique­ness, respon­si­bi­lity to the home­land, and streng­the­ning of national senti­ments, a series of factors that some­times ampli­fied the pres­sure on newly arrived war migrants. In both coun­tries of resi­dence, the full-scale war led to high levels of diaspora mobi­li­za­tion and consolidation.

See dedi­cated web page on the Journal of Refugee Studies website.