Ukraine & Russia Aid Dispute: Will Kiev Allow Russian Trucks to Enter?
Russian aid trucks heading to Ukraine stopped on Wednesday as confusion continued to mount over the entire situation, the New York Times reported.
On Tuesday the Ukrainian government said that it would refuse entry to the convoy of Russian trucks, said to be loaded with humanitarian supplies.
Some are concerned in Kiev, as well as in Western countries, that this could be a veiled attempt by Russia to help the pro-Russian rebels that have been fighting in eastern Ukraine. Those rebels recently have been losing ground to Ukrainian forces.
Even though Ukraine is set to grant access to the aid trucks, the country remains wary of the Russians. The conflict between Ukraine and the pro-Russian separatists has killed more than 2,000 people since mid-April.
"First they send tanks, Grad missiles and bandits who fire on Ukrainians and then they send water and salt," said Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk. "The level of Russian cynicism knows no bounds."
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, Russia had given Ukraine a general list of goods being carried by the trucks, but that a more complete list was required.
"A number of important issues still need to be clarified between the two sides, including border crossing procedures, customs clearance and other issues," said Anastasia Isyuk, an ICRC spokeswoman.
The 260-truck convoy sent from Moscow included food, water bottles and generators, Isyuk said. Bloomberg reported that the aid totaled more than 2,000 metric tons, or about 4.4 million pounds.
The Ukrainian government over the last few weeks has had success against the rebels, who have been forced to retreat. A major complaint throughout the conflict is that Russia has been providing weapons to the rebels, although the Kremlin denies the allegations.
Cecile Pouilly, a U.N. spokeswoman, said the death toll in the Ukrainian conflict has reached 2,086 as of Aug. 10, adding that those are conservative estimates. The casualties include Ukrainian soldiers, rebels and civilians.
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