Meet the favourite toys saved as Ukraine’s children fled the war

US President Donald Trump said the war in Ukraine could end “within weeks” as he met with French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House over ending the conflict that has raged for three years.

During the meeting, Mr Macron sought to persuade Mr Trump to stick by Ukraine during negotiations to end the conflict, while Mr Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin would accept European peacekeeping troops in Ukraine as part of a potential peace deal to end the war.

Mr Trump’s latest statements came one day after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said he would resign if it meant Kyiv would be admitted to the NATO* military alliance.

Mr Zelensky has been calling for Ukraine to be given NATO membership as part of any deal to end the war, but the US-led alliance has been reluctant to commit.

“If there is peace for Ukraine, if you really need me to leave my post, I am ready,” Mr Zelensky told a Kyiv news conference. “I can exchange it for NATO.”

Mr Zelensky and Mr Trump have been engaged in a war of words since US and Russian officials met last week in Saudi Arabia for their first high-level* talks in three years. The move went against the West’s policy* of isolating the Kremlin* and infuriated Ukrainian and European leaders, who were excluded from the meeting.

Following the meeting, Mr Trump called Mr Zelensky a “dictator*”, falsely claimed Ukraine had “started” the war, and claimed that the Ukrainian leader was unpopular in his own country even though independent opinion polls had revealed the opposite.

Mr Zelensky said he was not “offended” by Mr Trump’s comments and was ready to test his popularity in elections once martial law* ended in Ukraine.

Mr Trump’s bold claims and Mr Zelensky’s bargaining aside, it has been three long years for Ukraine’s children since Russia invaded their country and started the war.

Many families have been forced to leave their homes to find safety and, after gathering clothes, important documents and food staples, there has been little room left in their bags for anything else. Sometimes children’s backpacks can only fit one special toy – whether it’s a teddy bear, a doll or a favourite truck. But these toys have been a lifeline for the children, helping them fall asleep, calm down and remember home.

Here are some of children who have shared which of their favourite toys they took with them with international aid agency UNICEF as they fled for safety.

Lyuba and her “bunny brother”

Five-year-old Lyuba has evacuated twice from her home in the Donetsk region, all the way to the other side of the country in Lviv. Although Lyuba does not remember that time of her childhood too well, she still has the “bunny brother” that was given to her by volunteers who helped her family in Lviv while they were living in a hostel*.

“There is a lot of shooting in Donetsk, so we are going to Lviv again,” Lyuba said. “This is my bunny brother, he’s coming with me.”

Alyona and Motya the rabbit

Eight-year-old Alyona had to flee her home in Ukraine’s Sumy region after a bomb hit the street where she lived. Before finding a temporary shelter away from the frontline*, she spent two weeks in a kindergarten that was being used as a refuge for displaced* families. In the room filled with beds and strangers, Alyona held on tight to her rabbit, Motya, which was something familiar in the middle of this unfamiliar place.

“We didn’t manage to take many things,” Alyona said. “But I took my favourite toy, Motya, with me. He is seven years old, and I am only one year older than him. I sleep with him, he is my favourite. That’s why I brought him with me.”

Milana and her doll Omelka

Seven-year-old Milana and her parents, brother and sister left the Donetsk region, which faced large-scale shelling. When she falls asleep, she hugs her doll, Omelka, who even sometimes appears in her dreams.

Andriy and the orange truck

Five-year-old Andriy often asks his mother if they can go back to their home in Kharkiv. But because of the devastating bombing, that is not a possibility. His family spent one week hiding in the cellar from the bombing, before evacuating their home. His mother quickly packed the essentials, but when Andriy asked to take his favourite truck, she could not say no.

“This is my truck,” Andriy said. “It’s really cool. My godfather gave it to me. I haven’t seen him for a long time, but he calls me and says hello.”

THE COST OF WAR
According to UNICEF, more than one third of children have been directly impacted by war in Ukraine. For the youngest children, aged three and under, they have known nothing but war. Those years for the country’s youth have also been particularly hard. School closures, lack of proper shelters and exposure to constant stress have caused immense learning losses and mental health problems.

In 2024, almost 15 million people in Ukraine needed humanitarian assistance, more than six million people fled the country and about four per cent of households had at least one child not living with the family – a rate even higher in frontline areas across the eastern and southern regions.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• NATO: the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an alliance of 32 countries from Europe and North America that agree to defend each other against attacks from others
• high-level: involving very important matters
• West’s policy: western countries have largely imposed sanctions or bans against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine
• Kremlin: a fortified medieval complex in Moscow considered the centre of supreme power in Russia, the Kremlin is also used to describe the Russian government itself
• dictator: a ruler that has total control over a country and usually one who has gained control by force rather than by being elected by the people
• martial law: when a country becomes controlled by an army instead of by its usual leaders, usually in times of war or civil rebellion
• hostel: a lodging place where people can stay temporary in shared rooms
• frontline: the part of the army closest to the enemy where the most fighting is happening and usually the most dangerous area in a war zone
• displaced: forced to leave their homes

EXTRA READING
Purple Poppy Day for war animals
Ukraine war changing kids’ dreams
Saving hedgehogs and hamsters in a war zone

QUICK QUIZ
1. What did US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron discuss when meeting at the White House?
2. What did Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky offer to do in exchange for Ukraine being accepted into NATO?
3. How long has the war been raging in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion?
4. What proportion of children have been impacted by war in Ukraine?
5. How many people fled Ukraine in 2024 because of the war?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. War affected children
If you were growing up in a war zone in Ukraine over the past three years, living in constant fear, evacuating your home and seeing your homes and schools bombed, how would your childhood memories and development be affected?

Fill out the columns below about the impacts of the war in Ukraine on the children;

HOW WAR AFFECTS THE CHILDREN IN UKRAINE

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Civics and Citizenship, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking

2. Extension
If you could only take one treasured toy or possession if you had to evacuate your home quickly, what would it be? Write a paragraph explaining why you chose that and what comfort it may bring you.

Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking

VCOP ACTIVITY
Imaginative dialogue
Imagine you were there during the event being discussed in the article, or for the interview.

Create a conversation between two characters from the article – you may need or want to include yourself as one of the characters. Don’t forget to try to use facts and details from the article to help make your dialogue as realistic as possible.

Go through your writing and highlight any punctuation you have used in green. Make sure you carefully check the punctuation used for the dialogue and ensure you have opened and closed the speaking in the correct places.