Ukraine Establishes Emergency Hotline for Students Wishing to Leave Country Due to Russian Invasion

Ukraine has established an emergency hotline for African, Asian, and other international students who are wishing to leave the country due to the Russian invasion, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba has announced.

In a Twitter post, Kuleba said that the ministry is working intensively to ensure students’ safety as well as to accelerate their border crossing, adding that Russia must stop its attacks on Ukraine, which affect everyone.

Students can call Viber or Telegram on this number: +380934185684.

According to reports, checkpoints on the Western border in Ukraine are accessible 24 hours per day, while the Ukrainian border officials said they are doing their utmost to accelerate the border crossing process of all citizens at the borders.

However, many international students attempting to leave Ukraine amid the conflict have reported racist treatment by security forces and border officials, pointing out that the latter are prioritizing Ukrainian citizens.

Students have told media that they have been required to leave the public transit bus at a checkpoint between Ukraine and Poland border. 

“My body was numb from the cold and we haven’t slept in about 4 days now. Ukrainians have been prioritized over Africans — men and women — at every point. There’s no need for us to ask why. We know why. I just want to get home,” a Nigerian student, Rachel Onyegbule, told CNN.

It has also been reported that more than 800 medical students, the majority of whom international students, were stuck in Sumy, a city in northeast Ukraine. Most of these students come from Nigeria, and others from Turkey, India, Ireland, Ghana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Angola, Rwanda, and Lebanon.

Data by the government indicate that there were over 76,000 international students pursuing studies in Ukraine in 2020.

Millions of people have already left Ukraine since February 24, when the Russian forces invaded the country. The conflict has caused huge damage, leaving hundreds of people dead and many injured.

According to the United Nations, at least 364 Ukrainians have died since the conflict began, 759 have been injured, and more than 1.5 million people have fled the country.  

Today on March 7, the advisor to Ukraine’s president, Mykhailo Podolyak, said that the third round of talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations is expected to be held Monday.

Russia’s invasion of its neighbor country Ukraine, is the largest European conflict since the Second World War.