Tag: humanitarian aid

Russia reminds UN that Ukraine agreed on Russian aid on August 12

Russia has sent a humanitarian convoy to the east of Ukraine, considering that it has received official authorization of Kiev government, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said.

The corresponding note was received on August 12, Churkin said, noting that the humanitarian aid to Syria was delivered without the consent of the authorities of the country.

“If we are talking about respect for sovereignty, we have received a formal agreement from them [the Ukrainian authorities]. We have discussed this issue with them, and if they decided to cheat, then it’s their problem,” Churkin told Russian reporters after the closed meeting of the UN Security Council on Ukraine on Friday.

The note that gave consent for the passage of the humanitarian convoy through the Ukrainian border was received on 12 August, Churkin said.

Meanwhile both President Obama and Angela Merkel condemned Russia for an “incursion” into Ukraine.

“And the fact that they have people saying they received no orders, while firing at Luhansk, is just unfair. We cannot tolerate this and so we’ve made a statement,” the permanent representative said.

Churkin also recalled that the UN Security Council had recently created “a legal innovation,” when it had adopted a resolution on the delivery of humanitarian aid to Syria without the consent of the government in Damascus.

“There is a certain political innovation that cannot be ignored, but in this case, we believe that we have received the official consent of the Ukrainian government,” Churkin explained.

“Some members of the organization were not interested neither in the fact that civilians are being killed in the eastern Ukraine, nor in the fact that there is a humanitarian catastrophe in the region. They were worried by the fact that Russia is providing humanitarian assistance to the people who are under fire,” the Russian envoy to UN said.

“But we explained that we are in contact with the Ukrainian authorities and hope that there will be no problems with humanitarian aid and its delivery. The situation in the Security Council around this matter has then calmed down,” Churkin said.

A convoy of 280 trucks carrying food, medicine and other essentials for people in eastern Ukraine set out from near Moscow on August 12. It had been stranded at the border with Ukraine for more than a week.

The humanitarian disaster in Lugansk occurred after the Ukrainian army had blocked approaches to the city. All food supplies to Lugansk were interrupted. The local people were left without drinking water or electricity. Power supply to social facilities had to be urgently restored after artillery shelling.

Ukraine refuses Russian humanitarian aid – Red Cross

Ukraine refuses to recognize Russia’s cargo sent for the residents of the crisis-torn Donbas region in southeastern Ukraine as humanitarian aid, a Communication Officer for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Galina Balzamova said Saturday.

“The trilateral talks are underway. So far, we need to get Ukraine’s consent that the cargo is a humanitarian mission. The agreement has not been reached yet,” Balzamova said.
She added that Ukraine and Russia should reach an agreement regarding the convoy, as the Red Cross acts as a mediator only.

“That’s why Russian and Ukrainian sides should reach an agreement. Unless there is a detailed deal, the Red Cross cannot take the cargo under its responsibility,” Balzamova added.

She also urged to provide safety for those delivering the Russian cargo, including Russian drivers and Red Cross representatives.

Earlier this week, Russia sent a humanitarian convoy to Ukraine of 280 trucks carrying about 2,000 tons of humanitarian aid, with 400 tons of grain, 100 tons of sugar, 62 tons of baby food, 54 tons of medication, 12,000 sleeping bags and 69 mobile electrical generators.

On Friday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Kiev had intensified its military presence to prevent the humanitarian aid convoy from moving along the previously agreed-upon route to the city of Luhansk. The ministry called on all sides of the conflict to declare an immediate ceasefire for the time of the humanitarian operation and international organizations to support Russia’s efforts.

Source: RIA Novosti

Russian foreign ministry confirms fighting in eastern Ukraine, says Ukrainian govt trying to stop aid

Ukrainian artillery destroyed a “significant” part of a Russian armoured column that crossed into Ukraine during the night, President Petro Poroshenko told British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday, according to the presidential website.

Separately, a Ukrainian military spokesman said Ukrainian forces had tracked the Russian armoured column as soon as it crossed onto Ukrainian soil.

“Appropriate actions were undertaken and a part of it no longer exists,” military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told journalists.

Russia’s foreign ministry, meanwhile, said Ukrainian forces are engaging in intense fighting in Eastern Ukraine to stop humanitarian aid to the region.

It is unclear whether the fighting is focused on an armored vehicle convoy or the aid shipments.

When news broke of the fighting, U.S. markets immediately turned downward.

Bond yields fell, as tensions renewed. Gold prices also fell on the news.

European stocks also fell on the news, with the FTSEurofirst 300 falling 0.3 percent at 1,325.40 points, well below an earlier high of 1,340.88. – CNBC

Obama plans new sanctions if Russia delivers humanitarian aid

In case Moscow proceeds with its plans to deliver humanitarian aid without the authorization from the authorities in Kiev further sanctions are likely to be imposed in regard to Russia.

Russia’s planned humanitarian aid for the embattled southeastern regions in Ukraine must is possible only with the consent from the authorities in Kiev, the White House said in a statement following President Barack Obama’s telephone talks with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi on Monday.

“The [US] President and [Italian] Prime Minister considered the developing situation and reiterated that any intervention under the guise of “humanitarian” assistance must be provided only with the formal, express consent and authorization of the Government of Ukraine,” the statement said.

In case Moscow proceeds with its plans to deliver humanitarian aid to the war-torn Ukraine without the authorization from the authorities in Kiev further sanctions are likely to be imposed in regard to Russia, according to the statement.

“They [Obama and Renzi] agreed that any Russian steps not in accordance with these requirements would be unacceptable, would violate international law, and would lead to additional sanctions,” the statement added.

In a telephone conversation with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on Monday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia in cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross would send a humanitarian convoy to Ukraine.

Meanwhile Moscow’s calls for the evacuation of children from eastern Ukraine are not being answered, Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said. He stated that over 1,200 orphans have been abandoned in the region, which is under continuous shelling from Kiev troops.

Churkin spoke at the UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting in New York on Friday.

The UN diplomats assembled to discuss a UN report on human rights in Ukraine. He blasted the document while conveying that children have had to remain in Donetsk after Kiev’s forces intervened into the region. According to Moscow, there are 1,223 orphans in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

“It seems that UN philanthropists believe that children rather thrive under fire,” Churkin stated. A bus carrying a group of 16 orphans seeking shelter was stopped at a Russian checkpoint in June.

Due to the ongoing fighting in the region, they were transferred to a Donetsk refugee camp, where they spent the night and were sent back to Ukraine on Kiev’s request. According to local authorities, an act stating that both sides had no objections was signed at the time.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has also stated its readiness to support the humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.

Swiss President and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Didier Burkhalter welcomed the ICRC announcement that it would step up activities for the affected population in south-eastern Ukrainian regions and deploy additional teams there.

Russia and Ukraine agree on humanitarian operation – Lavrov

Moscow and Kiev have agreed on a humanitarian mission under the authority of the Red Cross, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated.

“With careful optimism, I can now say that, I think, all possible and impossible pretexts have been dismissed. I hope that in the very nearest future this humanitarian action will take place under the authority of the Red Cross,” Lavrov said.

“We’ve agreed on all details with the Ukrainian leadership,” the Foreign Minister declared.

He also expressed hope that “Western partners won’t put a spoke in the wheel and will think about the people who are badly in need of water and electricity,” Lavrov said.

Russia, together with the International Red Cross Committee, is sending a humanitarian convoy to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the head of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso, according to the president’s press service.

“Attention was focused on the catastrophic consequences of the military operation conducted by the Kiev authorities in the south-eastern regions, and the necessity to urgently deliver humanitarian aid to the conflict zone,” the statement said.

Foreign minister accused Washington, London and Berlin of a “blatant expression of cynicism” in thinking eastern Ukraine doesn’t need humanitarian aid.

“If what the press services in London and Washington, and I think, Berlin, too, [say] – about the telephone contacts of the US, UK and German leaders – if it’s true what was said, and in particular that all three leaders agreed there is no need for humanitarian aid to southeastern Ukraine, because all necessary measures are already being taken, then it’s a blatant expression of cynicism,” the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been left without water, electricity, mobile, and stationary communications for over a week. Constant deadly shellings have forced many to seek refuge in underground shelters, and 117,000 have been forcibly displaced within Ukraine, according to the latest UN figures. According to Moscow’s data, 730,000 others have fled to Russia. – RT.COM

Africa For Norway New charity single out now!

A spoof music video appealing to Africans to donate radiators for freezing children in Norway got almost 430 000 hits in five days on YouTube.

The video, a parody of the 1985 US charity song We are the World written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, was the idea of a Norwegian group which said it aimed to challenge stereotypes about Africa.

“We need to change the simplistic explanations of problems in Africa,” the Norwegian Students’ and Academics’ International Assistance Fund said.

Watch it here timeslive.co.za