In epic detour via Russia, Ukrainians skirt war front to flee to EU

People leave the Lux Express bus from St. Petersburg at the Tallinn Bus Station, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Tallinn, Estonia May 11, 2022. REUTERS/Janis Laizans

TALLINN (Reuters) - When Pavel fled his home region of Kherson in southern Ukraine he set his sights on reaching Portugal, where his sister-in-law lives - but like increasing numbers of his compatriots escaping the war, he took the long way round.

Too frightened to head west out of the Russian-controlled region and across the conflict's front line, he and his wife and baby daughter skirted it by travelling east into Crimea and then north through Russia, eventually entering the EU via Estonia - a detour of more than 3,000 km (1,860 miles).