Australia ordered the departure of the last officials from his embassy in Kyivgiven the increasing deployment of Russian troops on the border with Ukraineannounced on Sunday the Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison.
The evacuation took place after similar ads from U.S Y Canadain the midst of an intense diplomatic effort that failed to calm the growing tensions on Saturday.
Russia has practically surrounded its western neighbor with more than 100,000 soldiers.
Tensions rose after Washington warned that an invasion could take place “any day”, while Russia launched its biggest military maneuvers in years in the Black Sea.
Morrison stated that Australia it would move its operations to Lviv, a city near the Ukrainian border with Poland 540 km east of Kiev.
He noted that the three remaining officials in Kiev were supporting “the many Australians (in Ukraine), many of whom have dual citizenship.
“The situation, as everyone has heard, is deteriorating and reaching a very dangerous stage,” he warned.
The prime minister lambasted Russia’s “autocratic, unilateral actions” while criticizing China for “maintaining a chilling silence in the face of the Russian troop buildup on the border with Ukraine.”
“The coalition of autocracies that we see looking to put pressure on other countries is not something that Australia takes lightly,” Morrison said.
The Australian Foreign Minister, Marise PayneHe reiterated calls for Australians to leave Ukraine immediately, warning that “security conditions could change rapidly.”
