The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported Wednesday at least 136 are waiting for their repatriation from different European nations after crossing Ukrainian borders.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola said about 63 Filipinos have been repatriated and more are expected to arrive on March 9 and the coming days.
In the first batch of repatriation, an estimated 380 Filipinos living and working in Ukraine.
Arriola said “a little over a hundred” land-based overseas Filipinos are still inside the war-torn country and are reluctant to go home.
The DFA is coordinating with local manning agencies and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to facilitate our seafarers for their evacuation.
Arriola said most of the land-based Filipinos in Ukraine are in Lviv and Kyiv while the seafarers are in the Black Sea onboard their merchant ships.
The 21 Filipino crew members of MV S Breeze safely arrived in the Philippines after their rescue from Odessa, Ukraine to Moldova early this month. Also included among the 63 repatriates are seafarers from the MV Joseph Schulte.
