Union Minister Rijiju said the government's main aim is to provide safe passage to the Indian citizens.
New Delhi [India], March 1: Union Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju has left for Slovakia on Tuesday as a special envoy to oversee the evacuation efforts of stranded Indian students in Ukraine.
Speaking before his departure, Rijiju said, "As an envoy of our Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we will give his message to the Prime Minister Of Slovakia because without the help of their government, we cannot conduct this operation."
He further said, "We will do the overall coordination for the evacuation operation. Our Indian citizens will come from Ukraine so they will face the issue of visa and all paper works, so we need the support of the Slovakia government to help our citizens." He added, "Our main aim is to provide safe passage to our Indian citizens."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke to his Slovakian counterpart Eduard Heger and thanked him for the assistance provided by the Slovak Republic in the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine and for permitting special evacuation flights from India.
In a phone call, PM Modi requested for Slovak Republic's continued assistance in the next few days, and India undertook to evacuate other citizens from conflict zones.
"Prime Minister thanked Eduard Heger for the assistance provided by the Slovak Republic in the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine, and for permitting special evacuation flights from India. He requested for Slovak Republic's continued assistance in the next few days as India undertook to evacuate other citizens from conflict zones," the Prime Minister's office said in a statement.
PM Modi also informed Heger about the deployment of Kiren Rijiju as his special envoy to oversee the evacuation efforts of Indian citizens. He expressed his anguish at the ongoing violence and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and reiterated India's consistent appeal for cessation of hostilities and a return to dialogue, the statement said adding further that PM Modi also stressed the importance of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations. (ANI)
