Three Malawian students who fled the Ukrainian war have decided to not return to Malawi, telling the Malawian embassy that they will explore other opportunities so as to finish their studies.

According to Foreign Affairs spokesperson, John Kabaghe, a total of 11 Malawians reached the Malawian mission in Berlin and 8 out of the 11 have reunited with their families.

“We were monitoring their movements out of the country, 3 have decided to hang around the region to explore how they can complete their education and the other 8 have moved to join their families. Our mission is now monitoring the situation of Malawians inside Russia itself,” said Kabaghe.

According to international media, it is not clear how many Ukrainian soldiers have died during the Russian invasion, but Kyiv reported that 18 people were killed at a military base near the Black Sea port of Odesa in the deadliest single attack.

The Ukrainian military says at least 4,500 Russian soldiers have been killed, and Moscow has acknowledged that its soldiers have been killed and wounded. However, Moscow maintains that its losses are far lower than those suffered by Ukraine.

On the battlefield, Ukraine’s military claimed that Russia had suffered “significant losses,” including 150 tanks, 700 armoured vehicles and 26 helicopters.

On Sunday, Russia claimed that it has hit more than 1,000 Ukrainian military targets since the invasion began. The ‘destroyed targets’ include 27 command posts, 38 S-300 Buk M-1 and Osa air defense missile systems as well as 56 radars

Meanwhile, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has reported that at least 368,000 people have now fled Ukraine into Poland and other neighbouring countries in the wake of Russia’s invasion.