Stranded refugees braved the cold as snow fell on the Ukraine-Romania border.

Kind locals brazed the freezing temperatures to hand out food and drink to displaced people taking shelter in Siret town on Sunday evening.

Thousands of refugees – both Ukrainians and foreign nationals – flocked to the border crossing following Russia’s full-scale assault which began Thursday last week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine’s Donbas region last week. He said in a public address on February 24: ‘We decided to launch a special military action aimed at demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine.’

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pleaded for peace but added that Ukraine will defend itself from any invasion attempts.

He said: ‘If they attack, if they try to take our county – our freedom, our lives, the lives of our children – we will be defending ourselves.’

At least 64 civilians have been killed while 160,000 have been displaced during the conflict, the United Nations reported. It added that actual figures are probably ‘considerably higher.’