More than 40 Filipinos have so far evacuated Ukraine's capital Kyiv to the western city of Lviv and now awaiting repatriation, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.
In a statement on Saturday, Feb. 26, the DFA said more Filipinos are expected to arrive in Lviv in the coming days amid the intensified conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Philippine Ambassador to Warsaw Leah M. Basinang-Ruiz and officials of the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw welcomed the Filipino evacuees who arrived in Lviv.
The Philippine Embassy in Warsaw has jurisdiction over Filipinos in Ukraine,
Basinang-Ruiz, who is overseeing the repatriation activities, assured that the Embassy is ready to assist those who want to leave Ukraine and go back to the Philippines.
"The Philippine Embassy is ready to assist them to leave Ukraine and enter Poland in order to board their flights on their way home to the Philippines," she said.
Free repatriation flights for those who want to return to the Philippines are currently being conducted by the DFA on the border of Poland as Ukraine's airports have been closed.
The Ambassador added that they are in constant coordination with the DFA's Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs (OUMWA) to extend help to Filipinos affected by the crisis.
" committed to assisting the remaining Filipinos in Kyiv and in other parts of Ukraine in order to bring them out of harm's way while there is still time," Basinang-Ruiz said.
DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola earlier 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.
According to Arriola, the DFA has so far accounted for 181 Filipinos in Ukraine, mostly in Kyiv.
"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.