The UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, announced that almost eight million people have left Ukraine since the start of the war almost a year ago, DPA reported.

"Nearly eight million people have left Ukraine for neighboring countries, and another 5,3 million people are internally displaced," Griffiths told the UN Security Council.

He added that 17,6 million people, that is, almost 40 percent of the population of Ukraine, need humanitarian aid.

Griffiths said he intended to unveil this year's humanitarian response plan for Ukraine, which requires about $3,9 billion, later this month in Geneva. He announced that there was no indication of an imminent end to the war.

According to official UN figures, more than 7.000 civilians have been killed since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"The actual death toll is certainly higher," Griffiths said.

According to the information of the UN Refugee Agency, the war caused the biggest wave of refugees since the end of the Second World War, DPA points out.