British telecoms company Vodafone UK said that it will make it free for its users to call Ukraine, and cover the roaming charges of any customers in the country.

The move comes as Russian troops push further into Ukraine, and hundreds of thousands flee the country. Local telco Mediana has seemingly been taken offline.

"Effective immediately, Vodafone UK is crediting all calls to Ukraine and waiving any roaming charges for Vodafone UK customers currently in Ukraine," Vodafone UK CEO Ahmed Essam Shelbaya said.

"We stand in solidarity with all Ukrainian people at this worrying time."

Vodafone UK is a part of Vodafone Group, which has its own CEO, Nick Read. We have contacted the company asking if similar moves are planned by other Vodafone regional divisions.

Update: BT Group said that it would also provide free calls and data to and from the region. "Please be aware that signal in the area might be affected by damage to local networks and equipment," the company said.

In Ukraine, telco Triolan announced that it will temporarily be offering Internet services in the country for free, after services in Kharkiv were disrupted Thursday morning. Update 2: Three has also followed suit.

At time of writing, telco Mediana has been taken offline. "Mediana is based in Melitopol in southeast Ukraine which was the site of a publicized explosion at the airport yesterday," Kentik director of Internet analysis Doug Madory said on Twitter.