A group of young people have staged a protest in the capital of Moldova against the Russian military invasion of Ukraine.

Many Ukrainians have fled the country to neighboring Moldova since the invasion began.

In front of the Russian Embassy in Chisinau on Saturday, more than 20 youths chanted that they want peace and oppose war, holding banners bearing the message that the Russian military should leave Ukraine.

The protest was organized by some high school students.

After the rally, the participants wrote messages to Russian President Vladimir Putin which were to be handed to officials of the embassy.

They wrote messages like "Wake up!", "Stop war!" and "Glory to Ukraine!"

A 17-year-old man noted that the war is meaningless and it should not have happened. He added that he hopes Russia stops its aggression and peace will prevail in Ukraine.

Moldova is one of the 15 former Soviet republics. It has an ethnic Russian minority and is heavily dependent on Russia in some areas, such as energy.

There is a growing sense of crisis and opposition to Russian behavior among Moldovans.