MEA Teams Sent To Borders With Ukraine To Assist In Evacuation Of Stranded Indians

In the meantime, the Embassy of India in Kyiv wrote to the government of Ukraine for the safety and security of Indian students in the country.

Russia-Ukraine Crisis Latest News: In the wake of Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Indian government has stepped up its efforts to evacuate its stranded nationals from Kyiv. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday issued a fresh statement saying the MEA teams are being sent to the land borders with Ukraine in Hungary, Poland, Slovak Republic and Romania to assist in the evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine.

In the meantime, the Embassy of India in Kyiv wrote to the government of Ukraine for the safety and security of Indian students in the country.

Earlier in the day, the Indian government cancelled special flights to Kyiv after Ukraine shut the airspace. The Indian embassy in Ukraine issued helpline numbers and guidelines to facilitate Indians stuck in the country.

To assist in the evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine, MEA teams are being sent to the land borders with Ukraine in Hungary, Poland, Slovak Republic and Romania, says the Ministry pic.twitter.com/L6iZYbukUS

— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2022

In another statement, the Indian government on Thursday said the stranded nationals from Ukraine can return home via Qatar, with aviation industry experts stating that civilian flights will restart from Ukraine only when its airspace opens. Currently, 20,000 Indians, mostly students, are stranded in Ukraine.

Since the Ukrainian airspace is closed due to the Russian military offensive, it is currently not clear how they are to travel from Ukraine to Qatar to take Qatar-India flights, which are operating normally.

The authorities of the eastern European country issued a NOTAM (notice to airmen) Thursday morning stating that civilian flights within Ukraine “are restricted due to potential hazard for civil aviation”.

The Indian Embassy in Qatar said on Twitter, “Government of India, Ministry of Civil Aviation has allowed passengers traveling from Ukraine to travel by transit under India-Qatar bilateral air bubble arrangement.”