Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Evacuation of Ghanaians should be tactical — Dr Antwi-Danso
Dr Vladimir Antwi-Danso, an International Relations Expert and Security Analyst, says it is unsafe to evacuate Ghanaians in conflict-hit Ukraine because the airspace is currently porous.
He said though the Government might be concerned about its citizens in Ukraine following the invasion of that country by Russia, it was not secure and convenient to evacuate them using the regular routes.
He asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work out a contingency plan and find alternative evacuation routes for the thousands of Ghanaians, including students in Ukraine.
Dr Antwi-Danso, also the Dean of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College, in an interview, said it was also advisable to liaise with other countries evacuating their nationals to see the possibility of having Ghanaians evacuated alongside.
He said it was important for the Foreign Affairs Ministry to collate data on all Ghanaians and where they resided in Ukraine to begin such evacuation processes when the time was appropriate.
Russia has begun a large-scale military attack on Ukraine, its southern neighbour.
In a televised speech, Russian President, Vladimir Putin, announced a “military operation” in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region – an area home to many Russian-speaking Ukrainians.
Parts of the region have been occupied and run by Russian-backed rebels since 2014.
Mr Putin said Russia was intervening as an act of self-defence, adding that Russia did not want to occupy Ukraine but would demilitarise and “de-Nazify” the country.
He urged Ukrainian soldiers in the combat zone to lay down their weapons and go home, but said clashes were inevitable and “only a question of time”.
He added that any intervention from outside powers to resist the Russian attack would be met with an “instant” response.
Some Ghanaian students and residents in Ukraine said they lived in fear and unsure of what would happen after loud bangs were heard in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was gravely concerned about the security and safety of the over 1000 students and Ghanaians in Ukraine.
The Ministry, in a social media post, asked Ghanaians in Ukraine to stay at home or in Government places of shelter as it engaged the authorities, relevant diplomatic missions, and the country’s honourary consul on further measures to be taken.
Ukrainian Police reported that at least eight people were known to have died in bombings by Russian forces.
Tension between Ukraine and Russia is long standing, with the current issue triggered by the 2014 overthrow of the pro Moscow Ukrainian government.
Russia saw the move as a sign that Ukraine could more closely align with the West in future, with Russian troops taking control of Crimea, a peninsula in the south of Ukraine.
Ukraine and the world community, however, still consider Crimea to be a Ukrainian territory under law.
The conflict has been ongoing ever since, and the UN estimates that at least 14,200 people have been killed in eastern Ukraine, including over 3,000 civilians.