138 Indonesians in Ukraine Are Safe: MOFA

TheIndonesia.id - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that 138 Indonesians in Ukraine are safe amid the rising tension in the region after Russia launched invasion on Thursday.

Director of citizen protection at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Judha Nugraha said the Indonesian government is maintaining communication with Indonesians who are currently in Ukraine and urge them to contact the Indonesian embassy for assistances.

“Based on our communications [with them], they are in safe condition. [We ask them to] remain calm and on alert – and to maintain communication with the Indonesian embassy. We also warn all Indonesians who encounter any difficulties to immediately contact the embassy,” Nugraha said on Thursday, February 24, as reported by Antara.

According to him, the majority of Indonesians are located in Ukraine capital Kiev, and they are migrant workers, manufacturers, and students.

“There are 11 Indonesians who live in eastern Ukraine, including Donetsk and Luhansk,” Nugraha added.

The director said the Ministry is currently working to prepare contingency plan to anticipate escalations and will continue to closely monitor the development.

“We’re asking Indonesians in Ukraine to gather at Indonesian embassy in Kiev, and those who are unable to do so are advised to stay where they are right now while we’re working to establish an evacuation plan,” he concluded.

On early Thursday local time, Russia launched military operation in what President Vladimir Putin said was an effort to demilitarize Ukraine, which was part of the Soviet Union.

The possibility of Ukraine joining NATO has been said as one the factors that lead to the rising tension within the last few weeks.

“Over the past few years, military contingents of NATO countries have been almost constantly present on Ukrainian territory under the pretext of exercises. The Ukrainian troop control system has already been integrated into NATO. This means that NATO headquarters can issue direct commands to the Ukrainian armed forces, even to their separate units and squads,” Putin said during a speech Monday.

“The United States and NATO have started an impudent development of Ukrainian territory as a theatre of potential military operations. Their regular joint exercises are obviously anti-Russian.”

In the same speech, he also recognized the independence of separatist regions Donetsk and Luhans as he called for those who “hold power in Kiev to immediately stop hostilities”.