BRUSSLES: The European Union has told non-essential staff from its diplomatic mission in Ukraine that they should leave the country, but has not issued an evacuation order, a spokesman said Friday.
The European decision comes after the United States and Britain urged their nationals to leave Ukraine, after the White House warned that it believes Russian forces are in a position to invade within days.
“We continue to assess the situation as it develops in line with the duty of care we have toward our staff and in close consultation and coordination with the EU member states,” Peter Stano said.
“We are not evacuating. For the time being, the non-essential staff have been given the opportunity to telework from outside the country.”
The White House said US citizens should leave Ukraine ‘in the next 24 to 48 hours’.
The European Union has had a delegation in Kyiv since 1993, to promote ties between the bloc and Ukraine. The current EU ambassador is Estonian diplomat Matti Maasikas.
According to news site EU Observer, Maasikas sent an email on Friday urging “all expat colleagues with the exception of the essential staff... to leave Ukraine ASAP to telework from outside the country.”
