PIA to Operate Special Flights to Evacuate Pakistanis Stranded in War-Hit Ukraine

Pakistan has shifted its embassy from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv to Ternopil amid the Russia invasion of Ukraine, instructing Pakistanis in Ukraine to travel to the city located at a distance of 460 kilometers in the west of the capital.

Meanwhile, CEO Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Air Marshal Arshad Malik, said the national flag carrier was ready to operate special flights to bring stranded Pakistani students back to their homeland.

“We are in contact with Foreign Ministry officials for the return of stranded students in Ukraine,” he said, adding that, “We will conduct flights for those caught in war-hit Ukraine as soon as we get a green signal.”

In a press briefing, Foreign Minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, said on Friday that the Pakistan embassy was shifted to Ternopil. The Foreign Office has instructed all Pakistani students in Ukraine to travel to Ternopil as soon as possible for evacuation.

The announcement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) comes as Russia has intensified its military action against Ukraine.

Separately, the Pakistan embassy in Ukraine asserted that all Pakistanis in the country were safe. The embassy said that Pakistani students would be safely evacuated to Poland and it was constantly in contact with Pakistan embassies in Poland, Romania, and Hungary.