Greek consul general in escape convoy

Renewed efforts were under way Tuesday to evacuate Greece’s Consul General Manolis Androulakis from the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which is under siege by the Russian Army. 

As announced Tuesday by diplomatic sources, Androulakis, the last diplomat of an EU member-state in Mariupol, was being transferred together with the mission of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, whose building in the city had been turned into a shelter in recent days. 

Androulakis is part of a multinational convoy which includes more than 30 people. He joined it after contacts made in recent days by Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias with the leaders of the OSCE, the Red Cross and the representative of the Vatican, which is leading the humanitarian mission in Ukraine. 

Dendias also spoke with representatives of the warring parties. There was a large movement of vehicles Tuesday transporting residents who are leaving their homes to escape indiscriminate Russian shelling. The convoy that transported Androulakis was on the road Tuesday to Zaporizhzhia, which is still controlled by the Ukrainian forces. From there it will head further west. 

The Foreign Ministry said that details of the evacuation convoy are being release gradually for security reasons.