 "Russia-Ukraine crisis: 3 more IAF aircraft to bring back stranded Indians")
Three more Indian Air Force (IAF) C-17 aircraft have taken off for Romania, Hungary, and Poland on Thursday to evacuate the stranded Indian nationals amid the escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
As per information received by IAF, the first four C-17 aircraft under Operation Ganga evacuated a total of 798 Indian nationals using airfields in Romania, Hungary, and Poland.
"First four IAF C-17 aircraft under #OperationGanga evacuated 798 Indian nationals using airfields in Romania, Hungary & Poland. They also supplied 9.7 tons of relief material," IAF officials said.
Notably, the American C-17 Globemasters and IL-76 transport aircraft are the most capable of flying long distances with around 400 passengers. The C-17 transport aircraft had helped in a big way in evacuating citizens and officials from Kabul when the Taliban captured Afghanistan and forced Americans to exit from there.
For the past few days, the Prime Minister has been chairing crucial meetings on the issue.
Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine's breakaway regions - Donetsk and Luhansk - as independent entities.
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Several countries including the UK, the US, Canada, and the European Union have condemned Russia's military operations in Ukraine and imposed sanctions on Moscow. These countries have also promised Ukraine to help Ukraine with military weapons.
The US, Canada, and European allies agreed to remove key Russian banks from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT which means Russian banks won't be able to communicate securely with banks beyond Russia's borders. President Putin has also signed a decree on special economic measures against the US and its allies.