Ensure safety of civilians

Russia and Ukraine must put in place local ceasefires and offer safe passageways. It is the responsibility of all parties in the conflict, and the international community, to ensure that the war doesn’t claim any more civilian lives

The devastating consequences of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine are now playing out on television screens and social media. There have been accusations of the use of cluster munitions and vacuum bombs in residential areas and more than a million people are caught in cities such as Mariupol, Chernihiv and Kharkiv that have been the target of shelling and bombardment. An estimated 1.5 million people have been forced to flee Ukraine and hundreds of thousands more have been internally displaced. Harrowing footage has emerged of Ukrainian children cancer patients being evacuated to Poland. The circumstances highlight the need for ceasefires and humanitarian corridors to facilitate the evacuation of the civilian population from Ukrainian cities, some of them effectively besieged by Russian forces.

Alexandra, 12, holds her sister Esyea, 6, who cries as she waves at her mother Irina, while members of the Jewish community of Odessa board a bus to flee Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Odessa, Ukraine, March 7, 2022 (REUTERS)

Talk of humanitarian corridors first emerged after the second round of talks between Russia and Ukraine last week, but the outcomes so far have not been completely successful. The International Committee of the Red Cross said the second attempt to evacuate 200,000 people from Mariupol in southern Ukraine was halted on Sunday, even as the Ukrainian and Russian sides traded charges on who was violating the truce. On Monday, the Russian military announced a ceasefire and the opening of humanitarian corridors for Kyiv, Kharkiv, Sumy and Mariupol. But Ukraine quickly rejected this proposal, saying it was not acceptable that the corridors were leading to Russia, and not to western Ukraine. In sum, despite intense international attention after 11 days of fighting, many civilians are no closer to receiving safe passage.

With no signs of the fighting easing, such measures are vital for getting civilians — including foreign nationals in Ukraine, many of them students from around the world (including India) — out of harm’s way. India too has been calling on Russia and Ukraine to put in place local ceasefires and offer safe corridors for evacuating Indian students. Such measures are especially necessary for Sumy, where an estimated 700 Indian students are stranded. Fortunately for India, most of its nationals have been evacuated from other conflict zones. However, no Indian policymaker will be able to rest until the last Indian is out of Ukraine. A ceasefire that holds and allows the evacuation of the Indians in Sumy is the need of the hour. It is the responsibility of all parties in the conflict, and the international community, to ensure that the war doesn’t claim any more civilian lives.