With three of the 18 known Russia-based Jamaican students already making plans to leave the country in the coming days, Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith is appealing to the remaining students to “make the right decision” and leave the country.

Noting that the Russia-Ukraine conflict has continued to worsen, resulting in a number of international sanctions for Russia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade in a release today (March 7) strongly recommended that “Jamaicans located in Russia leave that country”.

According to Johnson Smith: “Flights to and from Russia have already been restricted as several countries close airspace to Russian flights.”

In addition, “Visa and Mastercard have suspended all transactions with Russia and international financial transfers to and from Russia have also been suspended”.

The minister noted that these actions should be seen as a clear indication of the worsening situation in Russia and therefore advised that Jamaicans leave as soon as practicable.

In a new development, the foreign affairs ministry informed that it is now aware of four Jamaican medical students in Tibilisi, Georgia.

The ministry noted that contact has been made with the students and these nationals have also been asked to “consider their options including to find safe countries in which to seek shelter until the situation in the Eastern European region becomes clearer”.

The minister reminded: “Our Honorary Consul in Moscow, the Embassy of Jamaica in Berlin and our Consular Affairs Department remain available to engage with Jamaicans and they may be contacted at Schmargendorfer Strasse 32, 12159 Belin, [email protected] and [email protected]  or [email protected], respectively.”