Premier: We're Preparing Air Connections for Slovaks in Middle East (2)

Bratislava, 2 March (TASR) - As soon as the flight zone opens up, we'll send flights for Slovak citizens in the Middle East who have expressed interest in this, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) stated on Monday, declaring that Slovakia is gathering resources and preparing aircraft in this regard. "We have a huge number of people abroad who have travelled there on holiday, but also for work in an area that is currently under great pressure from the military conflict. We're gathering resources, preparing aircraft and arranging flight connections. As soon as the flight zone opens, we'll send flights and gradually withdraw those citizens who have expressed interest in this," said the premier. Parliamentary Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) told TASR that more than 2,500 Slovak citizens are in Dubai, while several dozen are in Qatar and Bahrain, and a number of Slovaks are in Oman. "Some of them will certainly come back by their own steam when the skies open up for flights, but some of them will have problems because they are stuck, and they should be repatriated by the state," he added. The House chair declared that as soon as the airspace opens, the entire fleet of the Interior Ministry is ready to help. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) announced on Monday that three repatriation flights will be prepared. "When the repatriation flights begin, there will be as many as necessary. We can't worry about how much these flights will cost, we must face the fact that these citizens will have no other way of returning home," Rasi told TASR, adding that he has no information yet that the Slovak Security Council will meet in connection with what is happening in the Middle East. "If it is convened, it will be convened by the prime minister of the Slovak Republic, but as of today, it hasn't yet been convened," he said. Meanwhile, Fico also warned that the situation regarding oil is escalating dangerously. "While supplies from the East have been halted, we're again seeing further problems in the area of a military conflict. All of this is pushing up the price of oil," he said, adding that the current increase in oil prices is between 7-10 percent. On Saturday (28 February), the United States and Israel launched coordinated massive military action against Iran, killing, among others, the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran responded with retaliatory missile and drone attacks on Israel and countries in the Persian Gulf. Air traffic in the region has been significantly restricted or even halted. NOTE: This story has been extended to include paragraphs 3-4. am/df