The Foreign Ministry says 12 Maldivian students are still in Ukraine and that the government is working to evacuate them to safety as soon as possible.

In a rare press briefing by the foreign ministry, it said that out of the 12 students still in Ukraine, 8 were stuck in the Russian border city of Kharkiv.

The latest media reports from International outlets have said that Russian forces invading Ukraine are currently exchanging gunfire with Ukrainian security forces on the streets of Kharkiv.

Out of the remaining 4, 3 Maldivians are currently in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv while 1 Maldivian remain in Dnipro.

A map showing the number of Maldivians spread over three Ukrainian cities/ Photo: Foreign Ministry

The Foreign Ministry also said that Minister Abdullah Shahid has discussed the matter of safely evacuating Maldivians currently in Ukraine with his Hungarian counterpart.

It assured that the Foreign Ministry and the Maldivian diplomatic mission in Germany are working to evacuate the Maldivians in the country.

The Foreign Ministry also said that they were in touch with 137 Maldivian students in Belarus and 88 in Russia. They said that the Ministry was assisting the students in Belarus and Russia with the issue of ATM withdrawals.

The Foreign Ministry also urged Maldivians in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus to reach out to the Maldivian mission in Germany and register at the mission.