Ukrainian refugees near 1.5m as Russian assault enters 11th day

The number of Ukrainian refugees is expected to reach 1.5 million on Sunday as Russia continues its attack 11 days after invading Ukraine and Kyiv pressed for further Western action, including more sanctions and weapons.

Moscow and Kyiv traded blame over a failed ceasefire on Saturday that would have let civilians flee Mariupol and Volnovakha, two southern cities besieged by Russian forces. Ukrainians who could escape spilled into neighboring Poland, Romania, Slovakia and elsewhere.

Ukrainian negotiators said the third round of talks with Russia on a ceasefire would go ahead on Monday, although Moscow was less definitive.

In a televised address on Saturday night, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on people in areas occupied by Russian troops to fight.

We must go outside and drive this evil out of our cities, he said, vowing to rebuild his nation.

Ukraine and Western countries have decried Putin’s reasons as a baseless pretext for the invasion he launched on February 24 and have imposed sweeping sanctions aimed at isolating Moscow and crippling its economy.

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