Moscow announced the proposed escape routes from Kharkiv, Kyiv, Mariupol and Sumy after Putin and Macron spoke by telephone on Sunday, saying the move was taken after a "personal request" by Macron.

But the Elysee Palace said no such request was made, with Macron insisting on "the respect of international humanitarian law, the protection of civilian populations and the supply of aid."

"That means that protection of civilians must be organised and humanitarian access allowed," a French presidency official, who asked not to be named, said Monday.

The Ukraine government rejected the offers of safe passage to Russia, which began its invasion nearly two weeks ago, or to Belarus, which is offering Moscow staging grounds for attacks.

More than 1.5 million people have fled across Ukraine's borders since the Russian assault began, according to the UN, creating the fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II.

Most have gone to neighbouring countries such as Poland, which had taken in some 885,000 people as of Sunday, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said.

A third round of Russian-Ukrainian talks on de-escalating the crisis are set for Monday, but previous rounds have produced no progress after Putin's vow to "neutralise" Ukraine "either through negotiation or through war."

© Agence France-Presse