On August 22, Russia began smuggling humanitarian aid into Ukraine without the consent and escort of the International Committee of the Red Cross, ignoring established international rules, procedures and agreements.
Although the border and customs services of Ukraine had already started to approve the contents of the Russian convoy, Ukrainian officials were later blocked by Russian forces and were unable to inspect the rest of the trucks in the column, despite previous agreements and the fact that our officials were invited to the territory of Russia. We are concerned about the safety of our employees in Russia. Moreover, we express deep concern that neither Ukraine nor the ICRC is aware of the content of the cargo.
The fact that the Russian trucks entered the territory of Ukraine without proper border and customs procedures, and that the cargo was not donated to the representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross indicate the deliberate and aggressive nature of Russia’s actions.
As we have previously emphasized, the Russian side is fully responsible for the safety of the cargo. It is important to note that Ukraine has already taken all necessary measures to ensure the security of the convoy.In order to prevent any provocations, we have issued the necessary instructions for the safe passage of the convoy. Despite repeated attempts by the Ukrainian government to establish contact between the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and its Russian counterpart, which is critical to ensure security along the route, this contact has not yet been established. . The terrorist groups in Ukraine are currentlycarrying out mortar attacks along a possible route of the cargo.
We are also not aware of the content ofany agreements between the Russian side and insurgents in Luhansk, and we do not exclude the possibility of planned provocations.
We consider this act to be another flagrant violation of the fundamental principles of international law by the Russian Federation, including the inviolability of borders, non-interference in the internal affairs of another state and bona fide fulfillment of international obligations.
We call on all international partners to join us in strong condemnationof the illegal and aggressive acts of the Russian Federation.
