Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created an enormous refugee crisis, with many Vietnamese fleeing to neighboring countries.
VietnamPlus reports that as of 5pm, March 6, over 2,600 Vietnamese had left Ukraine, mainly evacuating from Kyiv, Kharkov and Odessa. Of these evacuees, over 1,700 went to Poland, while Hungary received 290, Romania about 600, and Slovakia over 40.
Vietnam's embassy in Kyiv has assisted Vietnamese wishing to leave war zones as the Russian military continues to bombard cities across Ukraine. VnExpress further reports that 553 Vietnamese nationals will return to Vietnam from Romania and Poland on two evacuation flights this week.
Vietnam Airlines will operate the first flight, which is expected to transport 283 Vietnamese from Bucharest, Romania to Hanoi. It will depart Bucharest today and arrive in the capital at mid-day tomorrow, March 8. On Thursday, Bamboo Airways will fly 270 people from Warsaw, Poland to Vietnam.
Roughly 7,000 Vietnamese were living in Ukraine when Russia invaded on February 24. The Vietnamese Embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to assist nationals still in the country.
Over 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the war began, with the United Nations now calling this the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II. Vietnamese in Ukraine or its neighboring countries wishing to receive assistance can contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or Vietnam's embassies through the below info:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: 84-965411118, 84-981848484; Email: baohocongdan@gmail.com
Vietnamese Embassy in Ukraine: 380 (63) 8638999
Vietnamese Embassy in Russia: 79916821617
Vietnamese Embassy in Poland: 0048782257359
Vietnamese Embassy in Romania: 0040744645037
Vietnamese Embassy in Slovakia: 421 2 5245 1263, 421 915 419 568.
Vietnamese Embassy in Hungary 36 308 385 699.
[Top photo: Residents in Kyiv tries to flee the country/Emilio Morenatti via TIME]
