British nationals are preparing to flee Ukraine amid fears Russia will invade within days, with many fearing they could be stranded in the country.
The British Embassy in capital Kyiv has already evacuated half of its staff with concerns that Russian tanks are poised to pour down from neighbouring Belarus.
Most Britons plan to escape by air but if the airport is blitzed they will drive west towards Poland to flee, the Mirror reports.
Ken Stewart, 54, originally from Edinburgh, faces a particularly nail-biting few days as his Ukrainian wife Tetiana, 36, is giving birth.
She is due soon and will recover in a private hospital near their three-bedroom rented home 35 miles outside Kyiv, which is in the firing line.
They live with their three-year-old daughter Yaryna in a small and quiet village called Bucha, north west of Kyiv, towards neighbouring Belarus.
The IT executive and consultant, who relocated to Ukraine 15 years ago, said: “Of course it is worrying as we are about to have our second child. The plan is to go to a private hospital nearby and we’ve gone private. My wife is booked in there already for a few days.
“But if Russian troops do come down from Belarus and encircle Kyiv, even though we live outside, we are right in the area where they will be. If they roll towards us and into my village it will of course make me very angry. I have my life here.
“Our plan is to head west if we can, where it will be much safer."
It is believed there are up to 6,000 British ex-pats in Ukraine and several hundred plan a march of support with other foreign nationals in Kyiv to demonstrate their loyalty.
Peter Dickinson, 45, is originally from Amersham, Buckinghamshire, but has lived in Kyiv for the past 20 years, building up a successful publishing firm of several magazine including English speaking Business Ukraine.
His wife Susanna, 39, is Ukrainian and they have two children Nina, 11, and 14 year-old Elizabeth.
He realises he may have to make tough decisions. Peter said: “My life is here, my family , my business and my home so these are difficult choices. But the priority is the safety of my loved ones.
“We have looked at what we would do if there is an attack and if it’s possible we would try to fly out. Otherwise if that were not possible we would head in the car west but it may not be possible to cross into the EU if there is a refugee crisis. We are also looking into heading for safety in the mountains."
He added: “My number one priority in all of this is my wife and kids but I also don’t want to disrupt their lives if I don’t have to. If our lives are in danger, however, of course we will have to run."
Co-organiser of Saturday’s march Sean Kelly - a 53-year-old dad-of-two from Oxford, who has lived in Kyiv for 26 years, said: “I’m disgusted by what Putin is doing to our friends in Ukraine and will do everything in my power to support them.
“He has painted himself into a corner to the point where everyone here is expecting an attack.”
Logistics firm boss Sean, who lived in Kyiv with Ukrainian-born wife Natalia and children Oliver, two, and Elizabeth, seven, added: “I will evacuate my family first by driving them to Odessa in the south then putting the on a ferry across the Black Sea to Turkey.
"Once my children are safe I’ll head back to support Ukrainians in whatever way I can.”
Edinburgh-born healthcare firm boss Stuart McKenzie, 51, is also helping to organise the 300-strong flag procession through Kyiv on Saturday.
The dad-of-three was today honing plans to evacuate overland once the war starts and was preparing to pack bags and stock up on food and fuel. But he also plans to stay in Ukraine as long as possible to support the nation's war effort in any practical way he can.
Stuart, who is married to Ukrainian Lena, 49, and has children Victoria, 20, Robert, 14, and Stuart, 12, has lived in Kyiv for 28 years. He said: “Victoria is away studying in the US so she’s safe, but I’m getting anxious about getting Lena and the boys to safety.
“We’ve been asked to register with the British Embassy here in case an evacuation is ordered and there is clearly grave concern we’re heading for war.
“We’ve been living in the shadow of Russian aggression for years but this is different - we’re aware that Russian missiles and bombs could come flying into Kyiv at any moment.”
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