MOSCOW, August 29 (RIA Novosti) - Russia can and will provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Donbass, suffering from a humanitarian crisis, the Kremlin quoted Russia’s President Vladimir Putin as saying in a statement Friday.
"The Russian side, in its turn, is ready to and will provide humanitarian aid to the population of Donbass, suffering from a humanitarian disaster," Putin said.
The statement came after Russia's first humanitarian convoy of 280 trucks had taken 2,000 tons of aid to the troubled Luhansk last weekend.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that another Russian convoy may be sent to eastern Ukraine "very soon."
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow had already sent an official diplomatic note to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, notifying about the plans to prepare another mission.
Since mid-April the Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation in the east of Ukraine, attempting to suppress independence supporters, who refused to acknowledge the new government that came to power after the coup that took place in Ukraine on February 22.
According to the United Nations, more than two thousand people have died as a result of the confrontation, and over 4,950 people have sustained injuries in the fighting.
Moscow has repeatedly condemned the operation and urged for a ceasefire to prevent further casualties.
