Health Minister Viktor Liashko: Norway has admitted 443 war-injured Ukrainians for treatment
Norwegian Health Minister Jan Christian Vestre has begun a multi-day visit to Ukraine. Together with Viktor Liashko, the Ukrainian Minister of Health, he visited Lviv, a city that serves as a key hub for the medical evacuation of war-affected Ukrainians abroad, as part of the “Medevac Ukraine” program. This initiative was launched in the first months of russia’s full-scale invasion and enables people with complex injuries to receive free medical treatment and rehabilitation at leading clinics across Europe.
“The ‘Medevac Ukraine’ program is a true example of international solidarity. Since its launch, 5,703 of our citizens have been transported for treatment to foreign clinics, including 443 to Norway. The Norwegians regularly carry out evacuation flights for Ukrainians abroad, transporting 80% of our patients to other countries. Additionally, we have received five unique medical evacuation buses from Norway for transporting critically ill patients, which are fully equipped mobile intensive care units that have no equivalents in Europe. These buses enable us to transport an average of 1,500 patients each year. I am grateful to our partners for their unwavering support and trust. This assistance saves lives every single day.”
Since the early months of the full-scale war, Norway has been actively supporting Ukraine’s healthcare system and has become one of the key partners in the Medevac program. Departing weekly from Rzeszów, Poland, the medevac flights are carried out by a Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) aircraft, specially equipped and operated by the Norwegian Armed Forces Joint Medical Services. The National Coordination Center for Medical Evacuation at Oslo University Hospital is also involved in the process.
In 2023, Norway, together with the European Union (EU) and with support from the World Health Organization (WHO), manufactured and delivered 5 medevac buses specifically for Ukraine. No other country in the EU has transport of this level and configuration. The average cost of one bus exceeds UAH 10 million. In fact, these are intensive care units on wheels. Their technical capabilities allow for 48 hours of autonomous resuscitation support during continuous transportation over distances of up to 2,000 km. Each bus has up to 5 seats for intensive care patients and up to 10 seats for seated patients. Two of these buses are involved in the medevac of Ukrainians abroad (in 2024 alone, they transported 271 patients), while the remaining three have been allocated to the cities of Dnipro, Cherkasy, and Kharkiv. These buses perform inter-hospital patient transfers within Ukraine. Nearly 1,500 people were transported with the help of this fleet in 2024. The State Institution “Ukrainian Scientific and Practical Center for Emergency Medical Care and Disaster Medicine under the Ministry of Health of Ukraine” coordinates these transfers.
In May 2025, 24 employees from SAS (pilots, flight attendants, and technical staff) were awarded the Norwegian Armed Forces Medal for International Operations for their contributions to Medevac missions in support of Ukraine.
During their visit, the ministers toured the First Medical Association of Lviv, as well as the “Superhumans” and “UNBROKEN Ukraine” centers, where Ukrainians receive care and support for recovery from injuries, amputations, and serious illnesses.
Viktor Liashko expressed his sincere gratitude to Norway and all partners for their leadership, unwavering support, and trust.
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The “Medevac Ukraine” program was launched through collaboration between Ukraine’s Ministry of Health, the EU, the WHO, and the governments of partner countries. Both emergency treatment (as soon as the patient's condition allows transportation) and planned surgeries can be provided abroad. The costs of treatment are covered by the receiving countries and their medical institutions.
The evacuation of Ukrainian patients is carried out through a special medical hub, which was opened in the fall of 2022 near the Polish city of Rzeszów by Ukraine’s Ministry of Health in cooperation with the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Poland and representatives of the European Commission. The medical hub, located in the vicinity of the airport, is a facility equipped with all necessary amenities and medical personnel, where patients can safely rest or stay overnight during their evacuation transit. A specially equipped plane, designed to transport injured patients, lands weekly at Rzeszów Airport to transport Ukrainians to European medical facilities. Patients may temporarily stay in Lviv hospitals before being transported to the hub in Poland.
In total, 5,703 Ukrainians have received free treatment in foreign clinics under the program. This includes 4,190 military personnel and 1,513 civilians (151 of whom are children). Patients most commonly require care for severe injuries, rehabilitation, and burn treatment.
More than 20 countries worldwide have accepted Ukrainians for medical treatment, with Germany (1,652 patients), Latvia (639), Poland (453), Norway (443), and the Netherlands (408) among the top recipients.