According to UNB, Bangladesh advised all of its citizens in Ukraine to “leave to safer places” on Thursday, as Kyiv closed its airspace in the face of a Russian invasion.
In Ukraine, an estimated 500 Bangladeshi nationals, including students, are trapped.
The Bangladeshi Embassy in Poland stated it is in contact with the host government as well as Dhaka’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs “about future efforts to protect the safety of Bangladeshis in Ukraine.”
“Around 500 Bangladeshis are in direct touch with us. We have asked them to take shelter in safer places,” Bangladesh’s ambassador to Poland Sultana Laila Hossain told UNB over the phone from Warsaw.
Bangladesh does not have an embassy or consulate in Ukraine at this time. Ukraine’s de-facto diplomatic mission is the country’s embassy in Poland.
Ambassador Sultana, on the other hand, said that there may be more Bangladeshis in Ukraine who “had not yet contacted the Embassy.”
On February 15, the Bangladeshi Embassy in Ukraine requested that Bangladeshi nationals in Ukraine consider temporarily departing the country due to the turbulent situation there.
According to a previous caution, Bangladeshi citizens should avoid all non-essential travel to Ukraine and keep the Embassy in Poland informed about their status in Ukraine so that the mission can readily contact them.
