Fact Check: MEA Denies Reports Of Indian Students Held Hostage In Ukraine

NEW DELHI: India on Thursday rejected claims that Indian students are being held hostage in the city of Kharkiv, and said it has requested the support of Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking them out from the city and neighbouring areas.

"We have not received any report of any hostage situation regarding any student. We have requested the support of Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking out students from Kharkiv and neighbouring areas to the western part of the country," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

In response to the media queries about the hostage situation, Bagchi in a statement said, "Our Embassy in Ukraine is in continuous touch with Indian nationals in Ukraine. We note that with the cooperation of the Ukrainian authorities, many students have left Kharkiv yesterday. We have not received any reports of any hostage situation regarding any student. We have requested the support of the Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking out students from Kharkiv and neighbouring areas to the western part of the country,”.

We have been coordinating effectively with the countries in the region including Russia, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova. A large number of Indian nationals have been evacuated from Ukraine in the last few days. We appreciate the help extended by the Ukrainian authorities to make this possible. We thank Ukraine’s western neighbours in receiving Indian nationals and for accommodating them while they waited for flights to take them back home.”

Our response to media queries regarding reports of Indian students being held hostage in Ukraine ⬇️https://t.co/RaOFcV849D pic.twitter.com/fOlz5XsQsc

— Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) March 3, 2022

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