Countries: Australia, Ukraine Source: Refugee Council of Australia As the world marks the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) has urged the Australian Government to apply lessons learned from the national response to this war to displacement from other crises.The devastating conflict has claimed more than 12,300 civilian lives and left more than 27,800 injured.Nearly 7 million people have fled Ukraine, with the majority seeking refuge in Europe, while 3.6 million remain internally displaced. This includes more than 11,400 Ukrainians who have arrived in Australia since the conflict began.In response, the Australian Government issued visitor visas for Ukrainians fleeing the war, and later offered temporary protection visas and now permanency for those eligible. More than 4,700 Ukrainians were offered temporary humanitarian stay visas between April and July 2022, and a further 1,000 people were able to apply for Bridging Visas to remain in Australia temporarily.The Australian Ukrainian community has played a pivotal role in advocating for permanent pathways, access to work rights and education. This has been helped by the Government’s allocation of up to $1 million for Ukrainian community organisations, including the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations, as part of the Government’s ongoing commitment to support displaced Ukrainians.RCOA CEO Paul Power says this response has broken new ground in Australia’s reaction to humanitarian crises.“The Australian Government responded quickly to the crisis, allowing Ukrainians with close links to Australia to enter the country on temporary visas. For the first time in many years, this enabled people fleeing a conflict to travel safely, knowing that Australia would receive them at a time of great risk and uncertainly.“The government also drew heavily on the knowledge and energy of the Ukrainian diaspora in welcoming and providing temporary settlement of new arrivals, moving quickly to fund assistance programs.“While the response was not perfect, the experience provides valuable lessons in how Australia can respond to people fleeing other crises.”RCOA and its member organisations have worked with the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law in drawing these lessons, together with past crisis responses, into the development of a predictable framework for future Australian approaches to humanitarian emergencies.“In acknowledging the Australian Government’s efforts in responding to the war in Ukraine, we hope that the process can be improved and expanded to different communities, providing much-needed certainty at times of crisis.”