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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
National
Chris Hughes & Sian Traynor

Edinburgh dad prepares to flee Ukraine with heavily pregnant wife over invasion fears

An Edinburgh father is one of many people preparing to flee from Ukraine over fears of invasion.

Ken Stewart and his family have shared they are facing a terrifying wait to see if Russia will invade the country in the coming days.

Originally from the capital, Ken, 54, is currently living near Kyiv with his Ukranian wife Tetiana and their young three-year-old daughter Yaryna.

Heavily pregnant with their second child, Ken shared he is preparing for the worst, along with around 6,000 other Brits currently thought to be residing in the country.

READ MORE - Edinburgh man threatened to shoot bouncer after being denied entry to busy nightclub

With Tetiana due to give birth soon and recover at a local hospital near their village of Bucha, the family are now on high alert as Russian tanks continue to gather.

Speaking to the Record, the IT executive, who moved to Ukraine 15 years ago, said: “We are right in the area where they will be. If they roll into my village, it will make me very angry.

"Our plan is to head west where it will be safer, with no checkpoints.”

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Expats have been told to register with the British embassy, which has already sent half of its staff home.

Ken took part in the 2014 Maidan protests and was next to someone who was shot dead by suspected undercover police.

He said: “I was there when people were killed. It [the protests] was more about being independent from Russia than being more joined to Europe.”

Sharing similar worries, another Edinburgh dad explained he feels this situation may worsen, after living in Ukraine for almost three decades.

Edinburgh-born healthcare firm boss Stuart McKenzie, 51, has lived in Kyiv for 28 years and is married to Ukrainian Lena, 49, and has children Victoria, 20, Robert, 14, and Stuart, 12.

He said: “We’ve been living in the shadow of Russian aggression for years but this is different – we’re aware that Russian missiles and bombs could come flying in at any moment.”

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