Humanitarian flights to Quito planned but some Ecuadorians say they will stay in Ukraine

Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry said Monday night that 388 Ecuadorians have left Ukraine as a result of the Russian invasion, 257 of them arriving in Poland. According to Foreign Minister Juan Carlos Holguín, most say they want to return to Ecuador on a charter flight that will leave Warsaw later this week.

Ecuadorians at a cafe near the Polish-Ukrainian border await a flight back to Quito.

Holguín is concerned about what he calls a “sizeable number of students” who remain in Ukraine and say they don’t want to leave. “We are asking the families of the students to encourage them to leave immediately since the situation there is becoming more dangerous by the hour. They are in a war zone and we don’t know when it will end or how much damage will occur before it does,” he said.

The Ministry said that has reserved 350 seats for the flight back to Quito but will wait at least until Thursday before setting a departure time. “People are still arriving at the border and we expect another 100 or so to make the crossing,” Holguín said. “Not everyone arriving in Poland wants to return to Ecuador but most do.”

Holguín said that flight arrangements are also being made for Ecuadorians who have sought refuge in Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova and Romania. He added that the Ministry will provided free flights home to all of those who have left Ukraine, including arrivals in Great Britain, Spain, Germany and Mexico. He said the European flights will be by Spanish and Polish airlines.

The Foreign Ministry says it has received no reports of deaths or injuries of Ecuadorian nationals.