Russian President Putin Assures The Safety Of Indians

4 Air India flights — 3 to the Romanian capital of Bucharest and 1 to Hungary’s capital Budapest— were to operate over Friday and Saturday to fly back Indians took there by road from Ukraine.

PM Modi was assured by President Putin that Russian forces would ensure the safety of Indians who will be evacuated through the western border of Ukraine.

As the evacuees reach the capitals of Eastern Europe, the timing will be decided. PM Modi will review the situation in a Cabinet Committee of Security meeting on Saturday, sources said.

The flights, chartered by the government, which is bearing the cost, mark the return of nearly 16,000 Indians stranded in war-torn Ukraine.

By Friday evening, 200 Indians from western Ukraine had been taken to Romania through Suceava border crossing. The arrival of Indians in Romania marked a breakthrough for the government's efforts to bring Indian nationals safely after the Russian assault, resulting in the closure of the airspace and the destruction of runways.

At 3 am, the first evacuation flight from Mumbai took off for Bucharest. Due to the fluid situation in the war zone, the special flight scheduled to depart from Delhi for Bucharest is likely to depart around 10: 30 am.

"Not only is Ukrainian airspace declared restricted for civilian flights, but also airstrips in the country have been bombed. Poland was the closest to Ukraine from the evacuation point of view but there were logistical issues," a source said.

Accordingly, on Friday 4 buses - clearly marked by Indian flags to show that they are ferrying Indian students so that they are not mistaken for defense personnel - ferried the first batch of evacuees from Ukraine to Romania via the Suceava border crossing. Indian diplomats at Suceava will facilitate onward travel to Bucharest for the journey to India.

The Indian embassy in Slovakia's capital, Bratislava, announced that citizens from Romania, Hungary, and Poland would be flown out. Slovakia as of now is not a designated spot, but Indians arriving there will also receive consular assistance, the article stated