The Federal Government of Nigeria has disclosed that it is considering possible evacuation of Nigerians residing in beleaguered Ukraine amid the full-scale war going on in the European country.
This was announced in a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday. In the statement signed by the Ministry’s spokesperson Francisca Omayuli, the Federal government disclosed that it is monitoring the situation in Ukraine at the moment, adding that its priority is Nigerians residing in the country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, in the early hours of Thursday announced a military operation in Ukraine, with explosions heard soon after across the country.
Following the rising tension, the Federal government has assured that efforts are ongoing to secure a special aircraft to airlift Nigerians who are willing to leave Ukraine once the airports are reopened.
The Ministry also assured Nigerians in Ukraine that the Nigerian Embassy is committed to ensuring they are safe and secure despite the continuing military bombardments.
The statement reads, “The Federal Government of Nigeria has received with surprise, reports of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been reassured by the Nigerian Embassy in Ukraine of the safety of Nigerians in that country and measures being undertaken to keep them safe and facilitate the evacuation of those who wish to leave.
“The Federal Government wishes to assure the families with loved ones in Ukraine that as soon as the airports in the country are opened, it would assist in facilitating the evacuation of Nigerians who are willing to leave.
“In the meantime, the Nigerian Mission has confirmed that military action by the Russians has been confined to military installations.”
Speaking further during a press conference in Abuja, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, also assured that the government will evacuate those willing to leave Ukraine once the airports are reopened. He added that a hotline has been set up for the use of Nigerians in Ukraine to report any situation to the authorities.
Onyeama also explained that Nigeria was shocked to hear reports of the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian military despite constant denial by the latter that it was not planning to attack any country.
What Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister said:
“Well, you know, first priority is to Nigerian citizens that find themselves in Ukraine at the moment. We’ve been engaging over the last three weeks with our embassy in the Ukraine, and I’ve been personally in touch with the ambassador on almost daily basis since then. And of course the big challenge was whether to issue a travel advisory for all the Nigerian students and others living in Ukraine to leave.
“An advisory was given that those who felt the need to leave should do so, the consensus amongst the diplomatic representation of the various countries in Ukraine was that you know, the citizens should should stay. Of course, Russia was asserting that they were not going to invade. While of course, the US as we know, and some other Western countries, were saying that an invasion was imminent.
“So, it was difficult to know who to really believe, the Ukrainian government was assuring the citizens there, that they should just go about their normal business. And some Nigerian students who were interviewed said that, to all intents and purposes they were totally oblivious and unaware of any crisis and it was just when they turn on the news, or whatever, that they heard that there might be some issues.
“So, the advice from our mission was not to panic. But, importantly, hotline was set up by the embassy and reaching out to all the Nigerians and letting them know the number which they can call if they were in any kind of trouble. Now of course the attack, military action is underway. I’ve been in touch with the ambassador today. He has reassured me of the safety of the Nigerians in the Ukraine, and very importantly that so far all the attacks have been against military installations in the Ukraine. So that’s the situation as of now, but of course the airports are closed.”
