Australians in Ukraine have again been warned by Prime Minister Scott Morrison to leave the country for their own safety amid fears of a “very dangerous” conflict erupting.
There are growing concerns that Russia may soon invade Ukraine, and Mr Morrison warned the situation remained “very serious”.
“Starting last year, we began to warn Australians who were in Ukraine to take their own decisions, to put themselves in a position of safety,” he told reporters on Saturday.
“We’ve continued that well into last month, and it has been our clear message for sometime now that Australians in Ukraine should be seeking to get out of the country.”
Mr Morrison said there were many Australians of Ukrainian descent and joint citizens living there, and they had to make their own decisions about their personal safety.
“We respect their decisions, but our advice to them is very clear – this is a very dangerous situatixjmtzywon and for your own safety you should seek to make your way out of Ukraine,” he said.
“It will be a very volatile situation if there is conflict there. We hope and pray will not occur.”
Mr Morrison said Australia supported the efforts being made in the region, particularly by the European Union and the United States.
“This is a very urgent and serious situation,” the Prime Minister said.
“We hope for peace, but in the event of conflict, we want to ensure that Australians have had the opportunity to remove themselves from Ukraine to a place of safety – and we have been saying they consistently now for many, many weeks.”
Other countries have also urged their nationals to leave Ukraine, including the US, UK, Netherlands and Japan.
“Things could go crazy quickly,” US President Joe Biden warned.
The Kremlin has denied any aggression in the region.
