LATEST: Ukrainian exodus exceeds 3.5 mlns, says UNHCR

The latest developments in Russia’s war in Ukraine:

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GENEVA — More than 3.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion, surpassing another mark in the exodus that has generated the worst refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, says the United Nations refugee agency.

UNHCR reported on Tuesday that 3.53 million people have left the country, mostly to Poland, which received more than 2.1 million. It is followed by Romania, with more than 540,000 people, and Moldova, with more than 367,000.

Shortly after the invasion, which began on 24 February, UNHCR predicted that some 4 million refugees would be able to leave Ukraine, although it has reassessed that figure. Outings have slowed in recent days after peaking at over 200,000 people on two consecutive days at the beginning of the month.

The International Organization for Migration estimates that about 6.5 million people are internally displaced and suggested that some, if not most, could leave the country if the war continues.

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LONDON — Russian forces have failed to seize the port city of Mariupol despite weeks of bombing and days of fighting on its streets, says the British Ministry of Defense.

In a social media post, British officials said that “despite heavy fighting, Ukrainian forces continue to repel Russian attempts to occupy” the city.

Moscow troops have made “limited progress” in other parts of Ukraine over the past day, and remain “largely stagnant”.

For its part, the Ukrainian army said on Tuesday that its forces were still defending Mariupol and that they destroyed a Russian patrol boat and an electronic installation. But the Ministry of Defense pointed out that Russia controls the land corridor from Crimea, the peninsula that was annexed in 2014, and blocks Ukraine’s access to the Sea of Azov.

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PARIS — France sends 60 tons (55 metric tons) of humanitarian aid to Ukraine via Poland, including computers, medical equipment, formula milk and generators, according to its foreign ministry.

The shipment, valued at 2.4 million euros ($2.6 million) departed Paris on an A330 plane bound for the Polish capital, Warsaw, France said in a statement Monday night. “In collaboration with the Polish authorities, the material will be delivered to the Ukrainian authorities without delay,” he added.

Among the medical equipment there are 10 oxygen generators for intensive care units as well as 10 tons of medicines, the French government explained. The package includes computers and internet access equipment such as smartphones, routers and 60 kilometers (37 miles) of fiber optics.