According to the UN, around 18 million people in Ukraine are in need of humanitarian support. In the face of the war between Israel and Hamas, it is important “not to lose sight of the enormous” need for aid in Ukraine, said the head of coordination of the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Ramesh Rajasingham, now responsible for Security of the UN. Advice.
Due to severe damage to the country’s critical infrastructure, the civilian population’s access to electricity, heating, water supply and communications services remains limited, Rajasingham said, citing UN emergency relief coordinator Martin Griffiths.
40 percent of the population affected
A total of around 18 million people – 40% of the Ukrainian population – depend on humanitarian aid. Given the heavy frosts expected in winter, the situation is “extraordinarily worrying”.
The situation of the approximately four million people in the Russian-occupied areas of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson is particularly worrying. OCHA “can’t reach people there adequately,” Rajasingham continued.
The OCHA head of coordination emphasized that all parties to the conflict are obliged, under international humanitarian law, to allow “rapid and unimpeded access” to deliver aid to civilians in need.
US government warns of declining aid to Ukraine
Meanwhile, the US government has urgently warned against easing aid to Ukraine due to Israel’s support in the war against radical Islamist Hamas. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a Senate hearing today that Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted to “exploit” Hamas’ attack on Israel.
Putin hopes that the war in the Middle East will “distract” the West and that the US will reduce support for Ukraine.