It became clear, on Tuesday, that Norway will receive the wounded of the Ukraine war. But Norway has no chance of evacuating soldiers directly from the front, says Minister of State Astrid Bergmoul (Labour) at the Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness in an email to NTB.
The injured soldiers who want to be evacuated by the Ukrainian authorities must be transferred to a neighboring country. Bergmull writes that further evacuation to Norway is taking place from there.
Melby’s review
Liberal leader Gauri Melby said on Tuesday it was reprehensible if the government chose not to bring in wounded soldiers directly from Ukraine.
– It is incomprehensible to me whether the government still refuses to accept wounded soldiers directly from Ukraine, but they must come from third countries, which takes longer and makes the situation more dangerous. The liberal leader of VG said on Tuesday that the Minister of Justice is not saying anything about this, and I will demand an answer on that.
The ministry insists that the soldiers cannot be retrieved directly from Ukraine.
– It is not currently possible to travel to Ukraine, let alone travel to the front. Both Norway and other countries that contribute to medical evacuations must consider the safety of their staff.
No other country is evacuating wounded soldiers directly from Ukraine, Bergmol says.
regular routine
Bergmull wrote that the evacuation of wounded soldiers would be carried out through the same mechanisms as the evacuation of wounded civilians.
– Firm procedures are in place to deal with patient transportation, and Norway has many aircraft that can be used. All Norwegian transport support will be from neighboring countries of Ukraine.
On April 23, Norway was asked for the first time to provide assistance through the European Union’s Civil Emergency Preparedness Scheme. Then three new orders came in May. Several claimed that the government delayed the decision to evacuate wounded soldiers.
DSB is the point of contact
Many also expressed confusion about the ministry responsible for the eviction.
Bergmål writes that the Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning is Norway’s point of contact in the evacuation process. They receive evacuation requests, which are reported to the National Coordinator at Oslo University Hospital (OUS), who decides with districts and health trusts whether hospitals have the capacity to receive patients.
– The Ministry of Health and Care Services is constantly informed by the OUS about the reception of patients.