Despite urging, no safe corridor created to evacuate students from Ukraine’s Sumy; India to UN
700 Indian nationals in Sumy are stranded after evacuation efforts failed due to continuous shelling.
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New Delhi, March 8: India told United Nations Security Council it was concerned that a humanitarian corridor didn't emerge for Indian students in Sumy, Ukraine; despite New Delhi urging Russia & Ukraine to permit one.
Tirumurti thanked Ukraine and its neighbouring countries for facilitating the return of over 20,000 Indian nationals in the last few days. He expressed India’s willingness to evacuate nationals of other countries as well. He also said India welcomed Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s ‘flash appeal’ for Ukraine and his regional refugee response plan. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres had announced, on March 1, a fundraising appeal , calling for $1.1 billion to assist 6 million Ukrainians inside Ukraine over an initial three-month period and a further $551 million to help those who have crossed over into neighbouring countries.
On Monday, Tirumurti’s remarks to Security Council suggested that offering humanitarian assistance was not inconsistent with “neutrality” .
He said, “Allow me to underscore that it is important that humanitarian action is always guided by the principles of humanitarian assistance, humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence. These should not be politicised."
Russia’s attack & invasion of Ukraine has precipitated one of Europe’s largest humanitarian crisis in decades, including for Indian and other foreign students who are stranded in the country. 700 Indian nationals, many of them medical students at Sumy State University, are stranded there after evacuation efforts failed due to continuous shelling.
In the UN Security Council meeting today on humanitarian situation in #Ukraine️, I made the following statement ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/b9i418kAp5
— Amb T S Tirumurti (@ambtstirumurti) March 7, 2022
“Our Prime Minister once again spoke to the leadership of both sides today [ March 7 ] and reiterated our call for immediate ceasefire and the need for both parties to return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy,” India’s Permanent Representative to United Nations, T.S. Tirumurti, said at a Council meeting to discuss the humanitarian crisis.
“We have also reiterated our urgent demand for safe and uninterrupted passage for all innocent civilians, including Indian nationals, remaining in Ukraine. We are deeply concerned that despite our repeated urgings to both sides, the safe corridor for our students stranded in Sumi did not materialise,” he said.
#IndiainUNSC
— India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) March 7, 2022
📺Watch: Permanent Representative @AmbTSTirumurti speak at the #UNSC Briefing on the Humanitarian Situation in #Ukraine ⤵️@MEAIndia @IndiainUkraine @IndEmbMoscow pic.twitter.com/oXoRsNGS9x
Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for the failure of evacuation corridors and they traded charges again during Monday’s meeting.
Tirumurti thanked Ukraine and its neighbouring countries for facilitating the return of over 20,000 Indian nationals in the last few days. He expressed India’s willingness to evacuate nationals of other countries as well. He also said India welcomed Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s ‘flash appeal’ for Ukraine and his regional refugee response plan. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres had announced, on March 1, a fundraising appeal , calling for $1.1 billion to assist 6 million Ukrainians inside Ukraine over an initial three-month period and a further $551 million to help those who have crossed over into neighbouring countries.
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He said, “We hope the international community will respond positively to the humanitarian needs."
On Monday, Tirumurti’s remarks to Security Council suggested that offering humanitarian assistance was not inconsistent with “neutrality” .
He said, “Allow me to underscore that it is important that humanitarian action is always guided by the principles of humanitarian assistance, humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence. These should not be politicised."