Ukraine war: Desperate mother writes details on toddler's back

A mother who scrawled contact details on her two-year-old daughter's back while fleeing Ukraine has described to the BBC reporters, her desperation in that moment.

Sasha Makoviy said she wrote little Vira's name, age and some phone numbers on her, in case the family were separated or killed while fleeing Kyiv.

"In case of our death, she could be found and would know who she is," Ms Makoviy explained.

The family are now in France where they feel "surrounded with love and care".

After arriving, Ms Makoviy posted a photo of the writing on Vira's back to Instagram, and the image has since gone viral.

Worried that her daughter might live but have no surviving family members, Ms Makoviy hoped that at least Vira would one day be able to look up her mother's social media accounts to know what she looked like.

"I thought that she can find some information from the internet, maybe find my account on Instagram - and maybe she could see her parents," she said.

Having finally reached the safety of France after a long escape through Moldova, Romania and Belgium, Ms Makoviy says she is mentally "crushed".

The war was so traumatic, she says, that simply walking outside is frightening, because she mistakes stones for landmines.

"Vira is fine. She is too small to understand what is going on. She can feel something from me, but she is too small to understand. I'm really happy about her age. Really happy."