“Traitor” Narratives and Wartime Belonging among Ukrainian Migrants in Europe
(2026) SIMZ11 20261Master of Science in Global Studies
- Abstract
- Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 produced one of the largest
displacement movements in contemporary Europe, with millions of Ukrainians seeking
protection across the European Union. While migration from Ukraine has often been
understood through the lenses of safety, protection, and humanitarian need, wartime
mobility can also become morally charged. Decisions to leave, stay, return, volunteer,
fight, work abroad, or remain silent may be interpreted through intensified expectations
of loyalty, sacrifice, and national belonging. In the Ukrainian public, media, and online
discourse, labels such as “traitor”, “coward”, “evader”, “hero”, and “victim” do not
simply describe people’s actions; they help construct... (More) - Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 produced one of the largest
displacement movements in contemporary Europe, with millions of Ukrainians seeking
protection across the European Union. While migration from Ukraine has often been
understood through the lenses of safety, protection, and humanitarian need, wartime
mobility can also become morally charged. Decisions to leave, stay, return, volunteer,
fight, work abroad, or remain silent may be interpreted through intensified expectations
of loyalty, sacrifice, and national belonging. In the Ukrainian public, media, and online
discourse, labels such as “traitor”, “coward”, “evader”, “hero”, and “victim” do not
simply describe people’s actions; they help construct moral boundaries around who is
recognised as a legitimate member of the national community.
My thesis examines how Ukrainian migrants in Europe perceive, experience, and
respond to “traitor” narratives within transnational Ukrainian networks and online
communities. Focusing on Ukrainians connected to Sweden, Germany, Finland, and
Ukraine, the study explores how accusations of betrayal or insufficient loyalty are
encountered in everyday life, and how migrants interpret, resist, internalise, ignore, or
negotiate them. The research will adopt an interpretivist qualitative approach based on
semi-structured interviews. Rather than treating “traitor” discourse as a direct reflection
of individual attitudes, the thesis approaches it as a discursive practice through which
wartime belonging is constructed, contested, and emotionally experienced.
The study will bring together critical discursive peace psychology, transnational
migration studies, postcolonial perspectives, and psychological literature on betrayal.
It argues that accusations of disloyalty are not only rhetorical or symbolic, but may
affect migrants’ identity, emotional well-being, family relationships, and imagined
futures of return. By analysing how moral boundaries of loyalty travel across borders,
this thesis will contribute to a deeper understanding of how war shapes belonging
among displaced Ukrainians beyond the territorial borders of the state. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9238827
- author
- Vorobiova, Yevheniia LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- SIMZ11 20261
- year
- 2026
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Migration, wortime displacement, national belonging, transnationalism, loyalty, betrayal, wartime identity
- language
- English
- id
- 9238827
- date added to LUP
- 2026-06-25 09:36:44
- date last changed
- 2026-06-25 09:36:44
@misc{9238827,
abstract = {{Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 produced one of the largest
displacement movements in contemporary Europe, with millions of Ukrainians seeking
protection across the European Union. While migration from Ukraine has often been
understood through the lenses of safety, protection, and humanitarian need, wartime
mobility can also become morally charged. Decisions to leave, stay, return, volunteer,
fight, work abroad, or remain silent may be interpreted through intensified expectations
of loyalty, sacrifice, and national belonging. In the Ukrainian public, media, and online
discourse, labels such as “traitor”, “coward”, “evader”, “hero”, and “victim” do not
simply describe people’s actions; they help construct moral boundaries around who is
recognised as a legitimate member of the national community.
My thesis examines how Ukrainian migrants in Europe perceive, experience, and
respond to “traitor” narratives within transnational Ukrainian networks and online
communities. Focusing on Ukrainians connected to Sweden, Germany, Finland, and
Ukraine, the study explores how accusations of betrayal or insufficient loyalty are
encountered in everyday life, and how migrants interpret, resist, internalise, ignore, or
negotiate them. The research will adopt an interpretivist qualitative approach based on
semi-structured interviews. Rather than treating “traitor” discourse as a direct reflection
of individual attitudes, the thesis approaches it as a discursive practice through which
wartime belonging is constructed, contested, and emotionally experienced.
The study will bring together critical discursive peace psychology, transnational
migration studies, postcolonial perspectives, and psychological literature on betrayal.
It argues that accusations of disloyalty are not only rhetorical or symbolic, but may
affect migrants’ identity, emotional well-being, family relationships, and imagined
futures of return. By analysing how moral boundaries of loyalty travel across borders,
this thesis will contribute to a deeper understanding of how war shapes belonging
among displaced Ukrainians beyond the territorial borders of the state.}},
author = {{Vorobiova, Yevheniia}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{“Traitor” Narratives and Wartime Belonging among Ukrainian Migrants in Europe}},
year = {{2026}},
}