A convoy of 280 Russian trucks reportedly packed with aid headed for eastern Ukraine yesterday, but Kiev said it would only allow the goods through under the close supervision of the international Red Cross.
A Ukrainian security spokesman said the convoy was being managed by the Russian army and so could not be allowed into the country.
The humanitarian crisis provoked by fighting between government troops and pro-Russian separatists has reached a critical point in recent days and heightened the urgent need for intervention.
Yet Ukraine and the West have voiced concerns that Russia could be using the aid initiative as a cover for sending troops into separatist-held territory.
“This convoy is not a certified convoy. It is not certified by the International Committee of the Red Cross [ICRC],” said Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.
Kiev says it is willing for trucks from Russia to unload their contents at a government-held border crossing border and for the aid to be transferred by the ICRC.
Valeriy Chaly, deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential administration, said any attempt to take aid into Ukraine without authorization would be seen as an attack.
Alexander Drobyshevsky, a spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Emergency conducting the mission, said the ministry had “not yet defined” where the trucks would cross. He said it could take several days for them to reach Ukraine.
Ukraine has stressed that the effort to alleviate the conflict-wracked Luhansk Province should be an international undertaking, saying that Russia’s involvement is required to ensure cooperation from rebels.
Russian media reported that 2,000 tonnes of aid was en route to Ukraine. Pro-Kremlin channel NTV showed hundreds of white trucks at a depot outside Moscow, reporting that they were carrying everything from baby food to sleeping bags.
Yet Lysenko said suspicions were raised by the military provenance of the trucks. In a briefing, he showed a covertly filmed video appearing to show vehicles similar to the white trucks at a military base in Russia. One frame shows troops lined up in front of a truck.
In Luhansk city, authorities yesterday said the 250,000 residents remaining had had no electricity or water supplies for 10 days.
“Luhansk is under a de facto blockade: The city continues to be destroyed, and the delivery of foodstuffs, medicine and fuel has been interrupted,” the city council said.
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