Russian aid convoy crosses into Ukraine, upping diplomatic stakes
Russian trucks loaded with humanitarian supplies had been idling at the border, but some have now entered Ukraine without permission, which Kiev considers an act of aggression. Russian and Ukrainian leaders are to meet next week.
Russian trucks loaded with humanitarian supplies had been idling at the border, but some have now entered Ukraine without permission, which Kiev considers an act of aggression. Russian and Ukrainian leaders are to meet next week.
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Trucks from a Russian aid convoy are moving into Ukraine, after the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Kiev of obstruction and announced its convoy would no longer wait at the border for permission to enter.
鈥淥ur convoy with humanitarian aid is starting to move in the direction of Luhansk,鈥� the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its website Friday, according to Russian outlet RT.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 impossible to bear this type of lawlessness, outright lies, and inability to agree. All of the pretexts for delaying the delivery of aid to the people in the region of the humanitarian catastrophe have been exhausted. The Russian side has made the decision to act,鈥� the statement continued, according to Ria Novosti.
There was no immediate official response from the government in Kiev, which had previously warned that any unauthorized entry into Ukraine would be seen as an act of aggression. Valentyn Nalyvaychenko, the head of Ukraine's SBU security service, told the BBC that Russia's decision amounted to a "direct invasion."
The move casts further uncertainty on the situation in Ukraine, where government forces and pro-Russian rebels are fighting in the east. Western governments say Russia is supporting the rebels, which it denies. Diplomats are due to meet again on the crisis in the coming days.聽
The convoy of about 300 trucks had been stalled at the border since last week. Ukrainian and Russian officials were trying to negotiate a deal to allow the convoy in, the Kyiv Post explains:
On Friday, the ICRC announced on Twitter that the convoy was moving into Ukraine, but they were not escorting it due to security concerns.
Reporters for the Associated Press counted 34 Russian trucks crossing the border, and another 32 vehicles from the Russian side of the border passing into the customs zone.
Roughly 250,000 people have been caught in Luhansk without water or electricity for the past two weeks, and the trucks are carrying humanitarian supplies, 海角大神 reported earlier this week.
However, journalists also saw about 24 armored vehicles moving from Russia into Ukraine late last week, intended for rebel aid, the Monitor noted.
The contradictory steps are likely intended 鈥渂y the Kremlin both to pressure Ukraine militarily and clear the way for Kiev politically to end the six-month old conflict with a peace acceptable to Russia,鈥� the Monitor reports:聽
Russia鈥檚 decision to press ahead with the aid convoy precedes a series of scheduled meetings between heads of state. On Saturday, Germany鈥檚 Angela Merkel will visit Kiev and on Aug. 26, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a European Union summit in Minsk, the Economist reports.聽
"Diplomacy is picking up, something new is in the wind, and everyone is fighting for positions," Mr. Strokan, told the Monitor earlier this week. 鈥淭hough political efforts have "sputtered along for months," he says, the rebels look to be out of options. "So, for Russia and the rebels, it's time to do a deal."
Diplomatic efforts may hit political hurdles: Both Poroshenko and Putin face stiff domestic pressure not to yield to the other side.