Indian Embassy in Ukraine shifted to Poland as war spreads to country's western parts

A missile fragment pierced the ceiling of an apartment in Ukraine. (Image: AP)

As the military offensive launched by Russia reached western Ukraine, the Indian government on March 13 said it is temporarily relocating its embassy in the war-hit country to neighbouring Poland.

"In view of the rapidly deteriorating security situation in Ukraine, including attacks in the western parts of the country, it has been decided that the Indian Embassy in Ukraine will be temporarily relocated in Poland," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

"The situation will be reassessed in the light of further developments," the MEA added.

On March 2, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla had noted that the Indian Embassy has set up an office in Lyiv, the western Ukrainian city which was so far considered to be relatively safe. The move was considered as an outcome of the Russian troops' advancement towards Kyiv, the capital city in central Ukraine.

Catch all the live updates of Russia-Ukraine military conflict

The invasion launched by Russia has so far battered Ukraine's eastern region, with widespread destruction reported in Kharkiv, Mariupol, Luhansk, Horlivka and Kamianske.

The war, however, now appears to be spreading towards the country's western region as well. Earlier today, a Russian airstrike at a military base near Lyiv claimed dozens of lives and left over 100 injured. According to the Ukrainian defence ministry, the death toll has climbed to 35 and at least 134 were left with injuries.

The military base that was targeted, Yavoriv International Center for Peacekeeping and Security, Ukraine's biggest military training facility and has served as a site for joint drills with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

The Russian airstrike holds the potential to further escalate the crisis as the military base that was targeted is barely 25 km away from the Polish border.

The Russian government has so far not issued a statement on the airstrike that was carried out so close to the Polish borders. The foreign ministry of Poland, however, was quick to condemn Moscow's actions.

"Poland condemns any element of aggression against Ukraine, including shelling of the Yavoriv base," Reuters quoted a ministry spokesperson as saying.