UN says more than 1.7 million Ukrainians have fled to Central Europe

PRZEMYSL, Poland/SIRET, Romania: More than 1.7 million Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion have so far crossed into Central Europe, the United Nation’s refugee agency said on Monday, as thousands more streamed across the borders.

Poland – which has the largest Ukrainian community in Central Europe – has received more than 1 million Ukrainian refugees since the conflict began on Feb. 24, with the milestone passed late on Sunday.

“This is a million human tragedies, a million people banished from their homes by the war,” the Polish border guard service tweeted late on Sunday.

A total of 1,735,068 civilians – mostly women and children, as men stayed home to fight – have so far crossed the border into Central Europe, the UNHCR said.

The European Union could see as many as 5 million Ukrainian refugees if Russia’s bombardment of Ukraine continues, the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said. Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a “special operation”.

Some Ukrainians have already passed through Central Europe, heading west. In Brussels, student Katerina Debera said she hoped she could build a normal life in Belgium.

“I just want to live in peace and in freedom. And I hope that here it will be possible,” the 20-year-old from Lviv told Reuters.