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Russia sending new aid convoy to eastern Ukraine
January 4, 2015, 7:22 am

File photo of an Russian aid convoy to eastern Ukraine [Xinhua]

File photo of an Russian aid convoy to eastern Ukraine [Xinhua]

Russian state media reports on Sunday said Moscow has sent a new humanitarian aid convoy to Ukraine’s southeastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

“The 11th convoy carrying humanitarian aid for Donbas [Ukraine’s southeast] will be formed of these trucks as well as of the trucks going to Rostov Region from other areas [of Russia],” said a statement of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

A Russian truck convoy of more than 60 trucks carrying aid earmarked for humanitarian relief in eastern Ukraine is heading to the Russian border region of Rostov on Sunday morning.

Ukraine has alleged earlier that Russian aid convoys could prove a Trojan horse for Russia to get weapons to pro-Russian separatists battling Ukrainian forces in the region.

Since August, Russian convoys have delivered some 13,400 tonnes of emergency aid to eastern Ukraine which is facing a humanitarian crisis.

Luhansk is one of two big cities in Ukraine’s Russian-speaking east being held by the rebels. The other is Donetsk, the region’s main industrial hub.

Ukraine and its Western allies, including the US and EU, accuse Moscow of supporting and arming the rebels.

Moscow denies such allegations but has warned of a “humanitarian catastrophe” in eastern Ukraine.

Fighting between government troops and rebels in Eastern Ukraine has led to the death of more than 4,700 since April.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has commended Crimea’s accession to Russia, thanking Russians for their bravery and loyalty in his New Year’s speech.

In his annual speech on Wednesday, Putin said that “this event will forever remain a most important milestone in our history”.

 

TBP