SUSITHA FERNANDO
Colombo, March 2 (IANS) Thirty-two Sri Lankan nationals who were stranded in Ukraine have been evacuated through four separate borders, Lankan Foreign Ministry sources said on Wednesday.
The Foreign Ministry had earlier announced that it was engaged in the evacuation of approximately 40 Sri Lankan nationals, including two students, via the Ukraine-Poland border.
The efforts have been facilitated by the Sri Lanka Embassies in Warsaw (Poland) and Ankara (Turkey), which are concurrently accredited to Ukraine.
The Foreign Ministry is also monitoring the status of Sri Lankan nationals in countries which share land borders with Ukraine.
After Russia launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, the Foreign Ministry had instructed the Sri Lankan Embassy in Ankara, which is concurrently accredited to Kiev, to take appropriate measures to coordinate the safe passage of the remaining Sri Lankans in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry had also announced that the Sri Lankan Embassy in Moscow, which is concurrently accredited to Belarus, is continuing to be in contact with the approximately 1,600 Sri Lankan nationals, including 1,556 students studying in over eight universities and higher education institutes in Belarus.
“Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in Moscow is in direct contact with the relevant university authorities, student and parent groups, as well as other concerned institutions in Belarus, with regard to the safety and welfare of the Sri Lankan students,” the Foreign Ministry stated.
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