Bangladeshis to evacuate Ukraine through Poland

The foreign ministry Thursday said arrangements were made for Bangladeshis stranded in Ukraine to evacuate the troubled Eastern European country through neighbouring Poland as Warsaw agreed to provide them a 15-day on arrival visa.

“The Polish government has agreed to provide on-arrival visa for 15-day to Bangladeshi nationals,” State Minister for foreign affairs Md Shahriar Alam told newsmen at his office this afternoon.

He added that 250 Bangladeshis in Ukraine by now enlisted them in a whatsup group while official estimate suggested another 250 Bangladeshis were currently living there but unofficial estimates suggest the number could be higher than 500.

Ukraine shares its western border with Poland while Russian troops entered its breakaway republics through the eastern side. 

Alam said the Bangladesh government would evacuate its nationals from Poland within 15 days through chartered flights while Bangladesh’s Warsaw mission was equipped with extra manpower mobilizing officials from Bangladeshi embassies to Germany and Italy.

The junior minister added that Bangladesh mission in the Warsaw would help the Polish authorities to identify the Bangladeshi nationals and setup makeshift camps for their temporary stay free of cost alongside the consular services.

The foreign ministry urged Bangladeshi nationals in Ukraine to contact with the Bangladesh mission in Warsaw through Telephone no: +48572094381 and asked them to move to a safer location and if necessary to Poland. 

Alam said the foreign ministry already discussed with the civil aviation authority and Biman Bangladesh airlines to charter aircraft for bringing back the Bangladeshis stranded in Ukraine. The foreign ministry, meanwhile, in a statement said Bangladesh was deeply concerned at the recent escalation of violence in Ukraine as such violence would seriously impact the peace and stability of the whole region. 

“Therefore, we urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint, cessation of hostilities and endeavour to resolve this crisis through returning to diplomacy and dialogue,” read the statement. 

It said Dhaka was also gauging possible impacts of the Ukraine crisis on the economy of the region and beyond due to the deteriorating situation, which several analysts called the most serious European crisis since the Second World War.

International media reports said Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, killing dozens and forcing hundreds to flee for their lives in the pro-Western neighbour.

Russian air strikes hit military facilities across Ukraine and its ground forces moved in from the north, south and east, triggering condemnation from Western leaders and warnings of massive sanctions, the reports said.