Roughly 3 million Ukrainians have fled the country as the Russian invasion closes in on its third week.
The United Nations International Organization for Migration said the number of refugees eclipsed that 3 million mark on Tuesday, while the United Nations Human Rights Council has its current tally right below that threshold.
‘BOMBING OUR SUPPLY LINES WON’T CHANGE ANYTHING’: UKRAINIAN VOLUNTEER PROCLAIMS
A significant majority, more than 1.8. million people, fled to Poland, whereas no other country has taken in more than half a million. Romania has welcomed roughly 453,000 refugees, while Moldova has taken in about 337,000, Hungary 264,000, and Slovakia 213,000, according to data from the Human Rights Council.
Roughly a million people have fled each week since the conflict began at the end of last month. As of last Friday, the Human Rights Council said that 1.85 million people have been internally displaced in Ukraine, while another 12.65 million people are in areas worst affected by the conflict.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reported on Monday that there have been 636 civilians killed, while another 1,125 have been wounded. Roughly 45 children were among those who have been killed.
Russia’s war in Ukraine has not gone according to plan, many have said, including a top ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Almost all of Russia’s advances remain stalled,” a senior U.S. defense official told reporters on Monday, though it has generally had more success in the southern parts of the country compared to its attempts to topple the capital, Kyiv. The official has previously said Russian forces have struggled to take the capital due to a stronger-than-expected Ukrainian resistance as well as fuel and food sustainment problems.
While the Russians have mainly been unable to conquer major cities, they have launched more than 900 missile strikes, often in civilian areas. In addition to the allegation of using weapons that have been banned for their lethality, Russians have been accused of targeting civilians, including the bombing of a maternity hospital ward.
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The White House warned last week that Russia could be gearing up to launch a chemical weapon attack in Ukraine as the latest possible escalation. It had accused the U.S. of running biological research facilities in Ukraine, a debunked claim, and China has pushed the conspiracy as well, while U.S. officials warned that it’s common for Russia to levy an accusation only to commit the act itself shortly thereafter.
The Department of Defense’s Biological Threat Reductions Program has worked with Ukrainian partners to improve their biological safety procedures since 2005 in 46 public health facilities and biological laboratories that the former Soviet Union used for its illegal biological weapons program, according to the DOD.
