MOSCOW, August 21 (RIA Novosti) - The first 16 trucks of the Russian humanitarian convoy are to cross into Ukraine after all the necessary procedures are agreed upon with Kiev, a source familiar with the situation said.
“The International Committee of the Red Cross [ICRC] and Russia have done everything that was required of them to prepare the cargo for passage, including providing the Ukrainian side with all the necessary documents. Now it is all up to the Ukrainian representatives,” the source said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry recently stated that Russia has done everything it could to ensure the security of the convoy’s passage, which has been confirmed by ICRC president Peter Maurer.
The ICRC still has not received confirmation of safe passage for the convoy in Ukraine.
The first 16 trucks of the convoy that carries humanitarian aid to eastern Ukraine are said to be stationed at the Donetsk border checkpoint. The rest of the convoy remains near the Russian town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky some 20 miles away.
Earlier in August, in light of the worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine, Russia suggested sending an international humanitarian mission to eastern Ukraine under the auspices of the ICRC.
The convoy comprises 280 trucks carrying about 2,000 tons of humanitarian aid, including baby food, medication, grain, sugar, sleeping bags and other necessities. It set off from the Moscow Region on August 12 heading toward Ukraine’s conflict areas.
