A village in the south of Spain has changed its name to 'Ukraine' temporarily as a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people during the brutal invasion by Russian forces that started almost 2 months ago.
Fuentes de Andalucia, which is 4,000 km (2,500 miles) from Ukraine, has also changed the names of streets in the town to famous places in Ukraine, such as Mariupol and Odessa, and painted the entrance to the village blue and yellow in honour of the Ukrainian flag. Meanwhile, residents have raised 3,500 euros ($3,780) within two days to help pay for a local refugee centre.
Around 25 refugees from Ukraine are already located in the town of 7,000.
The mayor of the town, Francisco Martinez, told Reuters:
"The main objective is to raise awareness about the conflict in Ukraine but also about where countries are at war in current times."
Adding:
"What we're doing is sending a message to the youngsters of the village, who can see how this is being organised, and that we all help together."
A 68-year-old pensioner, Rafael Osuna, is one of those housing Ukrainian refugees in their home. He said:
"The people of Fuentes are very proud of what we are doing. As I live alone and have a big house I have thought of taking in a Ukrainian couple for a while."
The left-wing coalition of politicians that are in charge in the village have also named other streets after places such as Palestine, Iraq and Yemen, who have long experienced war and an outpouring of refugees.
Following the invasion of Ukraine on the 24th of February 2022, the Spanish government immediately legalised all Ukrainians in the country and provided them with Spanish work-permits. Tens of thousands have now reached the country, most of whom have family connections with Spain. It is unclear when they will be able to return to their war-torn homeland.
[Based on reporting by: Reuters]
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