Hundreds gather at vigils across Yorkshire to stand with Ukraine following Russian invasion

“They don’t want to leave yet. They are safe and happy where they are at the moment, but they are scared,” she said.

Last night, the 67-year-old and her daughter Katrusha, 27, joined dozens of members of Bradford’s large Ukrainian community as they held a peace vigil at the city’s cathedral, to show solidarity with her relatives and everyone else in Ukraine, but also to condemn the war.

Her Ukrainian parents fled from the oppressive Soviet Union and moved to Bradford, along with thousands of their fellow countrymen and women, in 1948. But 74 years on, she is now being forced to watch as Vladimir Putin’s army invades the nation they once called home.

She said: “We want to unite ourselves together with everybody else, against Putin, to stop him waging war with Ukraine. We became free in 1991 and he’s trying to take us back again.”

Bohdan Matwijczuk, who holds the role of protopresbyter (archpriest) in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, said: “We’re here to keep the spirits of our people up.

“People from all corners of the world, from all religions and denominations, have also come together to support us and we want to pray with them and thank them.”

Mr Matwijczuk has friends and family across Ukraine and said most of them are determined to stay.

“Just like everybody else, the biggest worry is obviously family,” he said. “But most are hoping to stay. Even in all this adversity the spirit of the nation remains strong.

"They are going to stay and fight to the last drop of blood. It’s our land. They don’t want Putin and they don’t want communism.”

The protopresbyter also welcomed the “open door policy” which many European Union countries have adopted for refugees, but said the British Government must also be willing to offer refuge to any Ukrainian who needs it.

“The response so far, in a humanitarian sense, has been overwhelming,” he said. “But we are facing a watershed moment of a refugee crisis, which is predicted to reach four million people.”

The Bishop of Bradford, Toby Howarth, said the vigil brought together people from a range of faiths and backgrounds, who were willing to stand with Ukrainians and offer their support.

More than 250 people gathered to listen to speeches from faith leaders, Ukrainians and refugees from other parts of the world who have fled from conflict.

They also joined in prayer, listened to hymns from Ukrainian choirs and made donations, to support the people who have been displaced by the invasion.

It was one of a number of events which have been held in Yorkshire this week to offer support to the Ukrainian people.

In York, about 2,000 schoolchildren created a human chain across the city centre yesterday, while carrying ribbons in the colours of the Ukrainian flag and reciting prayers, and in Harrogate, more than 100 people took part in a 24-hour vigil.

Protests against the war have also been staged in a number of cities across the Yorkshire region, including Sheffield and Leeds.

The Right Rev Howarth said: “This is a peace vigil put together by the Ukrainian community in Bradford, which is the biggest outside London. There are really strong historic links between Ukraine and Bradford, so we thought it would be important for that reason.

“It’s also very Bradford, as it’s a multi-faith event.”

He added: “It’s about standing in solidarity with the people of Ukraine but also one another. But we’re also bombarded with all this horrible news and stuff that’s going on and we just need help to process it.”