MFA: 5,000 Slovaks in Middle East Have Asked for Assistance

Bratislava, 2 March (TASR) - The Foreign and European Affairs Ministry has reported that approximately 5,000 Slovak citizens in the Middle East have registered on the ministry's website to request assistance, Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) told a press conference on Monday, noting that all of them are interested in returning to Slovakia. The minister added that it won't be possible to transport all of these people due to capacity reasons, and that the repatriation flights will primarily focus on mothers with children and sick people. He asked other Slovak citizens to be patient. "We're monitoring everyone who registers and are urging them to indicate their status. This allows us to assess their situation, which may be critical. We want to address this primarily in terms of evacuation flights, whether they are mothers with children or sick people who need to be moved quickly in some way," said the minister. The foreign minister called on other Slovak citizens in the critical region to contact travel agencies, which are contractually obliged to take care of their clients in such situations. If travel agencies have a problem with this, the minister also advises citizens to contact the ministry's crisis centre. Slovakia's chief diplomat called on all citizens to be patient and follow the instructions in high-risk areas, recommending that those who haven't yet done so should register on the ministry's website. He noted that there are 3,100 registered Slovak citizens in the United Arab Emirates, 488 in Oman, 352 in Qatar, 213 in Jordan, 133 in Israel, 48 in Kuwait, seven in Lebanon, and three in Bahrain. Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) also confirmed at the press conference that the Interior Ministry's government fleet and Slovak Defence Ministry aircraft are ready to pick up Slovak citizens as soon as the flight zone opens. "We're also communicating with the Czech Republic about joining forces. We'll help them, they can still help us, but all aircraft are available, and the large-capacity ones can take off immediately to help our people," added the prime minister. Fico praised cooperation with partners and the work of the Foreign Ministry's crisis centre, which he visited on Monday, emphasising that the Slovak government has no other way to help in this conflict. He expressed solidarity with all countries that are the target of Iran's retaliatory actions and reiterated that Slovakia's stance remains that it considers the attack by the United States and Israel to be a violation of international law. The Interior Ministry announced on Monday that it will organise at least three repatriation flights this week - two from Amman, Jordan, and one from Muscat, Oman. 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. am/df