Russian Invasion Of Ukraine: 99 Indonesian Citizens Successfully Evacuated, 24 Chose To Defense And 13 Detained In Ground Combat

Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. (Source: Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has succeeded in evacuating 99 Indonesian citizens (WNI) from Ukraine, temporarily in two safe locations in Romania and Poland, said Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.

Foreign Minister Retno said the situation in Ukraine is still very dynamic and changing rapidly. This situation, he said, greatly influenced the efforts of the Indonesian government to evacuate Indonesian citizens.

"Of course, the safety of Indonesian citizens is our priority. From the beginning we have calculated that this evacuation will not be easy, it has a fairly high level of complexity and danger in the midst of the ongoing battle", said Foreign Minister Retno in a virtual press statement Tuesday, March 1.

"In addition, the presence of Indonesian citizens is also scattered in several cities in Ukraine, which means they do not live in one city", continued Foreign Minister Retno.

To make the evacuation process smooth, Foreign Minister Retno communicated with several foreign ministers from friendly countries, exchanging information about the situation and safe routes for evacuation.

"Communications are also carried out with the Ukrainian, Russian and ICRC authorities, especially to request safe passage during the evacuation for the security and safety of Indonesian citizens", explained Foreign Minister Retno, adding that coordination was also carried out with Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS), State Intelligence Agency (BIN) and relevant domestic ministries and institutions.

"Meanwhile, our Indonesian Embassy in Kyiv, Warsaw, Bucharest, and Moscow are continuously alerted to support the evacuation", she said.

To date, as many as 99 Indonesian citizens have been successfully evacuated from Ukraine, including five foreign nationals (WNA) who are the families of Indonesian citizens, as well as those who carry out independent evacuations.

"99 Indonesian citizens have left Ukraine, once again, including 5 Indonesian citizens who evacuated independently. And now they are at two safe points, namely in Bucharest, Romania and in Rzeszow, Poland", said Foreign Minister Retno.

"There are still 4 Indonesian citizens in Kharkiv and 9 in Chernihiv, in the north of Ukraine. They cannot be evacuated considering that ground fighting is still going on", she continued, adding that the Indonesian Embassy in Kyiv and the Indonesian Embassy in Moscow were in constant contact with them.

Foreign Minister Retno said the information they received was that they were in good health and had sufficient logistical supplies. The government is still waiting for the right moment to be able to evacuate them.

"In addition, there are 24 Indonesian citizens who choose to stay in Ukraine for family reasons, they are married to Ukrainian citizens", concluded Foreign Minister Retno.