Russia’s 11th Humanitarian Convoy for Donbas Heading to Border With Ukraine

A Russian Emergencies Ministry official has said that the 11th Russian humanitarian convoy, carrying 1,400 tonnes of aid to the war-torn Donbas region, is currently heading towards the Russian state border with Ukraine.

MOSCOW, January 8 (Sputnik) —The 11th Russian humanitarian convoy carrying 1,400 tonnes of aid to the war-torn Donbas is currently heading towards the Russian state border with Ukraine, Russian Emergencies Ministry official said Thursday.

“The convoy of more than 120 trucks left the Don Rescue Center of the Russian Emergencies Ministry and is heading towards the state border,” Oleg Voronov, deputy chief of the crisis management center with the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry, said.

On Wednesday Voronov said that the cargo of the 11th aid convoy includes foodstuffs, medicines and presents for Orthodox Christmas for eastern Ukrainian children. The Christmas presents will be distributed among schools, kindergartens, hospitals and other community facilities.

The regions of Donetsk and Luhansk have been suffering a severe humanitarian crisis as a result of a military operation launched by Kiev in mid-April 2014.

Since August 2014 Russia has delivered a total of 13,400 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the region. The tenth humanitarian aid convoy returned to Russia on December 22 after bringing food, medicines and building materials to Donbas.