Ukraine invasion: Malaysia said evacuation of diplomatic staff went according to plan
- Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry said the evacuation of nine Malaysian nationals, two Ukrainian dependents and a Singaporean was part of ‘detailed evacuation plan’
- Earlier, multiple government sources told the Post it was left to the last minute as officials were wary of Western intelligence about Russia’s planned assault
Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said the evacuation of its diplomatic staff in the under-siege Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Saturday was part of a detailed plan previously endorsed by the country’s top leaders, and refuted claims that the effort was bungled.
The South China Morning Post had reported based on multiple government sources that a group of diplomats led by the Charge D’Affaires ad interim Fadillah Daud decided to evacuate to neighbouring Poland in four cars after earlier being left in a state of limbo in the Kyiv embassy.
Sources had said part of the reason why the evacuation took place at such a late stage – as Russian forces began closing in on Kyiv – was inertia within the top ranks of government to act on Western intelligence about the impending assault.
Officials such as Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah deemed the Western intelligence part of an inaccurate “Western narrative”, some of the sources said.
In a lengthy statement issued on Sunday, the Malaysian foreign ministry strongly denied this was the case.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs regrets the reports of some media outlets with sensational headlines as well as baseless comments on social media that deviated from the real situation on the ground in relation to implementing this mission,” the ministry said in a statement in Malay.
It said Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Thursday decided to activate a “detailed evacuation plan” that was initially discussed during a cabinet meeting on February 16.
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