A family shows their happiness when they return to Vietnam from Ukraine. (Photo: VNA)

Since February 24, the fighting in Ukraine has threatened the lives and property of about 7,000 Vietnamese living there. The gravest concern of the Vietnamese Party, State, and Government is the security and safety of Vietnamese citizens and entities in Ukraine.

Urgent activities

When Russia began its military operation in Ukraine, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh organized a task force on Ukraine-related issues and directed ministries and sectors to evacuate Vietnamese people from dangerous areas to neighboring countries and bring home those who wish to repatriate.

“The Foreign Ministry has been working closely with agencies, overseas Vietnamese associations, and Vietnamese representative offices in Ukraine, Poland, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia to evacuate Vietnamese people from combat zones,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Hieu.

“The Vietnamese embassies in neighboring countries have made plans to receive Vietnamese citizens at the border and protect them from cold and hunger.”

About 2,000 Vietnamese have been evacuated from Ukraine and relocated to other countries. On Tuesday, the first repatriation flight, carrying 287 people, took off from Bucharest, Romania, and landed safely in Vietnam.

“I’m very happy that the Vietnamese government helped us return home. The overseas Vietnamese community took good care of us. The Vietnamese embassy has been very supportive. We thank the government a lot,” said Nguyen Thi En, a passenger on the flight. 

Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Hieu welcomes returnees at the airport. (Photo: VNA)

Mutual support tradition

On Wednesday, a flight carrying 270 Vietnamese people will depart Warsaw, Poland, for Hanoi. Poland has received the largest number of Vietnamese fleeing Ukraine.

Nguyen Hung, Vietnamese Ambassador to Poland, said the Embassy has formed a special citizen protection team that is working around the clock.

“We have worked closely with the Association of Overseas Vietnamese to establish support teams to help the Vietnamese people coming from Ukraine complete legal procedures in Poland, arrange accommodations, and take care of other necessary tasks.”

Vietnam’s aviation sector has arranged flights from 6 airports in Europe to repatriate Vietnamese citizens. 

“We anticipate that the conflict will continue. We will continue to receive overseas Vietnamese and take the necessary steps to help them. We’ll work with ministries and sectors to organize more repatriation flights as needed,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Hieu.