Hide In Your Homes – Government Expresses Concerns Over Ghanaians In Ukraine
Ukraine asks to join NATO
Putin warns against NATO extension into Ukraine
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has expressed concerns over the security of Ghanaian students and other Ghanaian nationals living in Ukraine.
This is coming on the back of tensions that have been brewing in the last few days over attacks from Russia on Ukraine, in what many fear could be the beginning of the Third World War.
Russia is demanding for an end to NATO’s eastward expansion, which will affect Ukraine, a former Soviet republic.
But reacting to the happenings in the country, a statement from Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the government will work at ensuring that its citizens in Ukraine are safe.
“The Government of Ghana is gravely concerned about the security and safety of our over 1000 students and other Ghanaians in Ukraine and has asked them to shelter in places in their homes or in government places of shelter as we engage the authorities, our relevant diplomatic missions and our honorary consul on further measures,” it said.
It is however unclear how many Ghanaians in total are currently living in Ukraine.
Why Russia is going to war with Ukraine
While there had been tensions between Russia and Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, for a long time, the situation began getting out of control in early 2021.
In January last year, Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, urged President Joe Biden of the United States to let Ukraine join NATO.
This angered Russia, which started sending troops near its Ukraine border for “training exercises” in spring last year and increased it during autumn.
By December, the US began hyping up the deployment of the Russian troops and President Biden warned of severe sanctions if Russia invaded Ukraine.
Russia has demanded that the West gives a legally binding guarantee that NATO will not hold any military activity in eastern Europe and Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin claims Ukraine is a puppet of the West and was never a proper state anyway.
This is not the first time tensions between Russia and Ukraine have reached a boiling point. Russia had invaded Ukraine in 2014 when rebels backed by President Putin had seized large swathes of eastern Ukraine and have fought Ukraine’s army since then.
At that time, Russia had annexed Crimea.