"Helping to evacuate foreign citizens is not something we have done for the first time. This is a form of humanitarian obligation that must be done," she remarked during a press conference held at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport here on Saturday.
Indonesia has evacuated five Philippine nationals at the request of the Philippines government as well as two Afghan citizens as part of its evacuation mission, she informed.
Of the two Afghans, one is the husband of an Indonesian citizen and another is a local staff of the Indonesian embassy, she added.
As part of the mission, 26 Indonesian citizens have been successfully evacuated in good condition, though one diplomat contracted an infection (non-COVID) and will receive treatment, she said.
The Indonesian Evacuation Team comprised officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the National Defense Forces (TNI), and the State Intelligence Agency (BIN).
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TNI's air force plane departed from Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in East Jakarta at 6 a.m. local time on Wednesday and reached Kabul, Afghanistan at 5:17 a.m. local time on Friday. Its route included Aceh, Colombo (Sri Lanka), Karachi (Pakistan), and Islamabad (Pakistan).
To ensure the success of the process, Indonesia collaborated intensively with Turkey's Foreign Affairs Minister, Norway's Foreign Affairs Minister, the Netherlands, the United States, and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Marsudi informed.
"In this opportunity, I would like to express my gratitude for the cooperation that has been given by the governments and authorities from India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, United States, NATO, Turkey, Norway, and Netherlands," she remarked.
To this day, Indonesia is still actively involved in communicating with various parties in Afghanistan in order to monitor the latest development in the country, Marsudi averred.
She said she hoped there is still a chance to conduct an inclusive political process —'Afghan-led, Afghan-owned', in this case—for the good of Afghanistan citizens.
"Indonesia will keep hoping for the establishment of peace and stability in Afghanistan," she added.
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Translator: Putu Savitri, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Suharto
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