Pakistani, Turkish Students Flee Ukraine Under Indian Flags Amid Brutal Russian Assault

Turkish and Pakistani students stranded in war-torn Ukraine were reportedly able to safely cross various checkpoints with the help of the Indian flag.

India's Union Minister G Kishan Reddy had earlier advised Indian students fleeing the country to place the national flag on their vehicles for safe evacuation.

"The Turkish and Pakistani students were also using the Indian flag," a student said, according to the New Indian Express, adding the Indian flag was of great help to them.

"We were told in Ukraine that if we carry an Indian flag with us, we won't have any problems," a medical student, who arrived in the city of Bucharest in Romania from Odessa in southern Ukraine, reportedly said.

The students said when they got to know the Indian flag could help them leave Ukraine in a smooth manner, they ran out to the markets to buy spray paints, and painted on the flags themselves.

"I ran into the market, bought some color sprays and a curtain. I then cut the curtain and spray-painted it to make the Indian tricolor," one student said.

"We booked the bus from Odessa and came to the Moldova border. The Moldovan citizens were very nice. They provided us with free accommodation and transport to get to Romania," another student said.

A lot of videos surfaced on social media where Pakistani students were seen complaining they were stranded in Ukraine and unable to get any help from their government.

The news of students using the Indian flag for help comes amid reports surfaced that students of color faced racism at Ukraine's borders while trying to enter Poland.

The latest incident also comes amid India's extraordinary efforts to evacuate their citizens stuck in cities and border points of Ukraine. On Monday, the government decided to send four Union Ministers to supervise the evacuation. The country also announced plans for more flights to bring back students.

Among the four Union Ministers is General (retd) V.K. Singh, whose role in the "unprecedented” mission to rescue Indians stranded in war-torn Yemen in 2015 had been lauded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then-Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj. Singh was part of Operation Raahat, which not only safely evacuated 4,741 stranded Indians, but 1,947 foreign nationals from 48 countries, too, under most difficult circumstances.

The three ministers involved in the latest mission are Union Ministers Hardeep Puri, Kiren Rijiju and Jyotiradtiya Scindia.

As tensions continue to escalate in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday if a third World War were to take place, it would involve nuclear weapons and be destructive.