Russia has no special plans to evacuate embassy staff and its citizens from Ukraine, Alexei Zaitsev, director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), said during a briefing.
“We are, to some extent, as far as possible, always ready. Therefore, there are no special plans, but such work is carried out on an ongoing basis in order to protect, as far as possible, both Russian citizens and employees of our foreign missions, ”he said.
Zaitsev recalled that there is a special department in the Foreign Ministry, and there are headquarters at the embassies that develop plans “in case of any difficult situations.”
On January 24, the US State Department ordered the families of employees of the US embassy in Kiev to leave Ukraine and allowed some of the diplomats to voluntarily leave the country. Washington explained this decision by the alleged threat of Russia’s invasion of the territory of the republic. After that, due to the “growing threat from Russia”, the UK began to take out part of the embassy staff in Kiev, and Australia, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, called on the relatives of its diplomats in Kiev to leave Ukraine. Also, the government of the last of the countries recommended that citizens not travel to the republic. The next day, Japanese authorities addressed their citizens with an urgent call to leave Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry called the US decision a premature step and a manifestation of excessive precaution. The official representative of the Foreign Ministry, Oleg Nikolenko, noted that recently there have been no cardinal changes in the situation on the border between Russia and Ukraine.
Last fall, the Western media began to publish materials about Russia’s military buildup near the Ukrainian borders and about its alleged plans to invade the republic. The Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin explained that the country conducts exercises and moves troops within its territory at its own discretion. Information about the invasion of Ukraine was denied there. Zaitsev said today that Russia considers even the idea of war with the republic unacceptable.