INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — No Filipino is residing in areas where martial law has been raised in Ukraine, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Thursday.
Amid the persisting conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the former’s President Vladimir Putin declared martial law in Ukraine’s Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions.
“The Philippine Embassy in Warsaw and the Honorary Consulate General in Kyiv have accounted 25 Filipino nationals in Ukraine, mostly residing in Kyiv, and none from the regions where martial law was declared,” the DFA said in a statement.
It added that the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw, Poland and the Honorary Consulate General in Kyiv are “constantly monitoring” the situation of Filipino nationals still staying in Ukraine.
The DFA likewise said that they are prepared to bring Filipinos home.
“The Department, the Embassy, and the Honorary Consulate General stand ready to repatriate our kababayans should they request assistance for immediate return to the country,” the agency said.
During the first half of the year, over 450 overseas Filipinos in Ukraine have been assisted by the DFA, and around 400 have returned to the Philippines.