Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) spokesperson Andrei Tarnea said on Tuesday that 5,500 Romanian citizens have returned to the country from the conflict zone in the Middle East.
"At this moment about 5,500 Romanian citizens have returned to the country from the conflict zone. Of these, 3,000 are Romanian citizens who came back on flights either organised or facilitated by the Foreign Ministry, while another approximately 2,500 citizens returned to Romania by their own means. I must reiterate, because it is important, that there are also a number of citizens who have returned safely from that area but, as they are not residents in Romania and instead live in EU member states, the figures there are not necessarily mathematically precise," Tarnea said during a press briefing.
According to him, 13 external partners have supported Romania through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, while the Foreign Affairs Ministry is currently handling around 5,016 assistance requests, a number that remains "in constant flux".
"When we say requests for assistance, not all of them refer to repatriation assistance. Some are requests for information or, if the situation evolves, these citizens have registered so that the consulate or the Romanian embassy in that country is aware of them for a possible operation, should one become necessary," the Foreign Ministry spokesperson explained.
Tarnea also recalled that on Monday morning 273 Romanian citizens returned to the country on two flights from Oman, and later the same day another 191 Romanians evacuated from Doha, Qatar returned on a flight assisted by the Foreign Ministry.
The United Arab Emirates has also reopened flight corridors for two daily flights to Romania, he added.
"Evacuations will continue today with the support of EU member states, from Riyadh and the United Arab Emirates. So both from Saudi Arabia and the Emirates through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. These are two flights operated by Bulgaria. On board there will be 18 Romanian citizens, including nine minors, as well as two family members who are citizens of other states - Mexico and Bahrain," Tarnea said.
Regarding the situation in Israel, Tarnea said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is currently monitoring around 89 citizens who have requested assistance.
"Of these, 12 already have tickets on commercial flights that exist and normally operate. We will remain in contact with them to see whether these flights can indeed take place. Another seven say they do not wish to leave Israel, although they initially requested repatriation assistance and are waiting to see how the situation develops, while with another 70 we have been in contact by phone, as they are interested in a possible assisted repatriation or evacuation flight," the spokesperson detailed.
There are also 690 requests for assistance from Romanian citizens stranded in the eastern hemisphere.
"Here we are talking about citizens in Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand. In Thailand there are about 160 Romanian citizens affected by the cancellation of flights, a significant decrease. Previously there were almost 500, but they have managed to secure seats on either commercial flights or rerouted flights arranged by airlines or travel agencies," Andrei Tarnea said.
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