Poland Reports 5.15 Million Crossing From Ukraine Since Start Of War, 3.25 Million Return

Poland has taken the bulk of refugees fleeing Ukraine, but other nearby countries have also accepted large numbers of the people displaced by Moscow's war. (file photo)

Polish border authorities have said that 5.15 million people have fled war-ravaged Ukraine to Poland since Russia's invasion began on February 24.

During the same period, 3.25 million Ukrainians have returned to their home country, officials said on July 31.

On July 30, the number crossing the border into Poland was 25,400, while 29,900 made the trip from Poland back to Ukraine, officials added.

In Warsaw on July 30, British musician Sting interrupted a concert to warn the audience that democracy was under attack worldwide and to denounce the war in Ukraine as “an absurdity based upon a lie.”

“The alternative to democracy is a prison, a prison of the mind. The alternative to democracy is violence, oppression, imprisonment, and silence,” Sting said.

Poland has taken the bulk of refugees fleeing Ukraine, but other nearby countries have also accepted large numbers of the people displaced by Moscow's war.

According to the UN refugee agency, more than 6 million people have been recorded as refugees across Europe since the start of the war.

Poland currently hosts more than 1.2 million. Germany has taken in 670,000, while the Czech Republic is sheltering more than 400,000, according to the latest UN data.

Based on reporting by dpa and AP