The Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday said 37 Filipinos in Ukraine are now being transported out of its capital, Kyiv, as part of the Philippine government’s repatriation efforts following Russia’s invasion of its European neighbor.
This came as Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said that he was traveling with other department officials to personally see and ensure the safety of Filipinos at the Ukrainian border.
He also thanked Poland for allowing Filipinos to cross amid the intensified conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola said the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw, which has jurisdiction over Filipinos in Ukraine, rented a bus to transport them to the border of neighboring Poland.
“As of now, there are 37 Filipinos on the road, on the way to Lviv for… repatriation… Our embassy will bring them to Poland,” Arriola said in a press briefing.
The Department of National Defense (DND) on Friday said they were also ready to assist Philippine government agencies in the repatriation of Filipinos from Ukraine amid the attack of Russian military forces.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said they were also closely monitoring the situation, committing to help the DFA in assisting affected Filipinos.
“We are monitoring the situation closely and are standing by to assist our other government agencies led by the DFA in repatriating our citizens from Ukraine, if and when we are called upon to do so,” Lorenzana said in a statement.
“We hope that the situation does not escalate beyond what can still be resolved through diplomacy and the international rules-based order,” he added.
The DFA said free repatriation flights for those who want to return to the Philippines are currently being done through the border of Poland as Ukraine’s airports have been closed.
“We are repatriating, any Filipino who wants to go home just let us know and we will help to bring them home,” Arriola said.
“But the travel now is by land and through the border of Poland because we can no longer use Ukraine’s airports,” she added.
The Foreign Affairs official said only Poland has so far agreed to accept Filipinos leaving Ukraine even without a visa.
Ukraine also shares borders with Belarus to the north; Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; and Romania and Moldova to the south.
The DFA has so far accounted for 181 Filipinos in Ukraine.
Arriola urged other Filipinos in Ukraine to contact the embassy or the Honorary Consulate in Kyiv to provide them assistance such as repatriation or care packages and financial aid.
“As for the rest of the Filipinos, we are begging, we are asking them, please inform the embassy through their contact numbers or the Honorary Consulate in Kyiv where you are so that we know how to help you and how to reach out to you,” she said.
The DFA said four more Filipinos in Ukraine have arranged for repatriation to the Philippines, in addition to six who flew to Manila on Friday.
Senator Richard J. Gordon on Friday urged a contingency plan for the Philippines in case the war spreads to other parts of Europe.
“War in Eastern Europe over Ukraine is fraught with dangers,” said Gordon.
He urged the immediate formulation and announcement of a comprehensive plan to minimize the expected fallout of the likely war in Eastern Europe over Ukraine.