Statements made by Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin today caused confusion in the country after he announced that a Ukrainian aircraft was hijacked from Kabul Airport, where it had landed to evacuate Ukrainian citizens, and that the hijackers had flown it to Iran. While the Iranian Aviation Authority indicated that a Ukrainian plane landed in Tehran for refueling before heading to Kyiv, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko clarified his colleague's remarks, denying the existence of any hijacked Ukrainian aircraft. He noted that "the Deputy Foreign Minister was generally explaining the unprecedented level of difficulties faced by diplomats in evacuating Ukrainians from the Afghan capital," asserting that Yenin's intention was to indicate that those involved boarded the aircraft under safe circumstances and returned home.
Earlier, the Deputy Foreign Minister stated, according to Russian news agency TASS, that unidentified individuals hijacked a Ukrainian plane that arrived at the Afghan capital's airport for the evacuation operation of Ukrainian citizens and flew it to Iran. He stated, "Unknown individuals took control of our plane last Sunday, and today, Tuesday, headed to Iran with an unknown group on board instead of evacuating Ukrainian citizens."
He mentioned that the hijackers were armed, but did not clarify what happened to the aircraft afterward or whether Kyiv regained control of it or facilitated the return of Ukrainian citizens from Kabul. He emphasized that the entire diplomatic corps, led by Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, had been working to resolve the matter during the past period.
This confusion came after a military transport aircraft carrying 83 passengers, including 31 Ukrainians, landed in Kyiv last Sunday, arriving from Afghanistan. The presidential office stated that 12 Ukrainian soldiers returned home, while foreign reporters and public figures who requested assistance were also evacuated. Additionally, it was noted that around 100 Ukrainians are still awaiting evacuation from Afghanistan soon. Since mid-August 2021, thousands of foreign and Afghan civilians have been rushing to the Afghan capital's airport to flee the country on American and other military aircraft amid fears of retaliatory actions by the Taliban, despite their pledge not to target civilians.
