Japan's embassy staff prepares to leave Ukraine as tensions escalate on border with Russia

Amid the growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, with Moscow deploying huge military forces along its eastern border, Japan has decided to evacuate almost all of its embassy staff from Ukraine. The Japanese government has taken this decision in the wake of the continuously growing tension between Kyiv and Moscow, calling it a threat to people residing in Ukraine, and hence the embassy has asked Japanese nationals to leave immediately.

According to a Kyodo News report, the Japanese Embassy in Kyiv stated on Sunday that most of its staff would leave Ukraine because of a possible Russian invasion. On Friday, the Japanese embassy also informed the Japanese nationals through an email that the embassy would limit its functions from Monday and "only a few" personnel would remain in the country. It is to mention that, along with Japan, the United States, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Germany, among other countries, have asked their nationals to immediately leave Ukraine, and several other countries have also begun withdrawing military forces from Ukraine.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Foreign nationals leave Ukraine as tensions grow between Moscow & Kyiv

Canada has also expressed concern about the developing situation and ordered its embassy staff to shift to Lviv, near the border with Poland. Notably, Russia itself has also asked its diplomats to leave Ukraine, citing "possible acts of provocation by the Kyiv regime or third countries," reported the BBC. American troops have also withdrawn around 150 troops who were training Ukrainian soldiers outside of the country, and Dutch airline KLM has also decided to stop flights to Ukraine, citing safety concerns.

Meanwhile, the United States has warned Russia of severe actions if the country invaded Ukraine. The White House has issued warnings that Russia could attack Ukraine and could begin with bombing from the air, claiming that the attack from Russia is likely to take place on Wednesday, February 16. However, President Putin has denied all the claims and said that the troops have been stationed only due to security concerns. Amid all the evacuation operations going on in Kyiv, the Ukrainian government has asked its citizens to stay calm and united and urged the people to refrain from actions that undermine stability and increase panic. Meanwhile, Russia has slowly started the war game, as pictures shared by the Russian defence ministry shows multiple rocket launchers being fired to the north, across the border in Belarus. However, Moscow continues to deny this, saying they have no plans to invade. 

Image: AP/ Representative