Ukraine began the evacuation of civilians, including foreign students, from Sumy on Tuesday after Russia agreed for a ceasefire from 10 AM (Moscow time) to establish humanitarian corridors in the cities of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol. These cities are witnessing the most fighting amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The route designated for safe passage for civilians from Sumy is Sumy-Holubivka-Lokhvytsia-Lubny-Poltava. The warring sides agreed to maintain a ceasefire on March 8 from 10 AM to 9 PM. Meanwhile, the humanitarian cargo route is Lokhvytsia-Andriyashivka-Romny-Nedryhailiv-Sumy, stated the ministry.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine confirmed the beginning of the evacuation window and said in a tweet, “We have already started the evacuation of civilians from Sumy to Poltava, including foreign students. We call on Russia to agree on other humanitarian corridors in Ukraine.” The tweet added, “A humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians, including foreign students, from Sumy to Poltava has been agreed today. We call on Russia to uphold its ceasefire commitment, to refrain from activities that endanger the lives of people and to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid.”
The development comes following the third round of talks between Russia and Ukraine in Belarus on Monday where the issue of humanitarian corridors was addressed and “small” progress was made regarding improvement in the logistics of these corridors.
Russian armed forces had also announced a ceasefire on Monday for the residents of Kyiv, Mariupol, Kharkiv, Sumy to leave the cities.
As per the International Committee of the Red Cross, an evacuation attempt was disrupted on Sunday when a ceasefire was violated in Mariupol.
Earlier, Russia had halted military operations in Kharkiv to let Indian citizens leave the city after requests from the Indian government.
