Today the meeting of the humanitarian subgroup began with consideration of the issue of the work of checkpoints on the Contact line. In the framework of this thematic block, I informed the coordinator and participants that Kiev continues to block the delivery of humanitarian supplies from international organizations to the DPR. Thus, the Ukrainian side violates the basic provisions of international humanitarian law applied in armed conflicts. This includes the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and Additional Protocol II, which provide for the inalienable right of civilians to access and receive humanitarian assistance.
It should be reminded that since February of this year, Ukraine has banned the passing of humanitarian convoys of the UNHCR and the ICRC through the “Novotroitskoye-Elenovka” checkpoint, thereby blocking the only channel for the delivery of international aid to the Republic that functions in the context of the pandemic.
The Ukrainian side motivated its actions by security problems in the area of the village of Elenovka. At the same time, Ukraine does not interfere with the crossing through the indicated checkpoint by the civilian population, and it continues in a harmonized manner.
This absurd situation leads to the conclusion that the lives of people for Kiev are less valuable than the international missions’ cargos. Such actions of Ukraine can only be perceived as a planned anti-human action and another attempt to achieve political benefits, speculating on humanitarian issues.
Within the framework of the meeting of the subgroup, a specific and intelligible answer to the question about the reasons for blocking the movement of humanitarian convoys from the representatives of the Ukrainian delegation did not follow. As a result, the coordinator of the subgroup said that tomorrow he intends to bring this topic up for discussion by the Contact Group.
For our part, we demand from Ukraine strict observance of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, ensuring the safe and unhindered crossing of the contact line for both people and cargos.
