Ukraine conflict: Russia convoy 'in customs border zone'
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http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28870974
Ukraine says cargo checks of the first lorries will not start until Thursday
Four
lorries from a 280-strong Russian aid convoy have moved into the
customs zone near Ukraine's border, a Ukrainian security official has
said.
But Andriy Lysenko said cargo checks by Ukrainian border
guards would not start until Thursday because Russia had not provided
all the necessary papers. The vehicles are due to continue into eastern Ukraine to deliver aid to civilians trapped by fighting.
Ukraine is concerned the convoy could be used to help pro-Russian rebels.
Russia has repeatedly stressed that the vehicles are carrying only food and medical aid to civilians trapped in the conflict zone, as heavy fighting continues between Ukrainian government troops and the separatists.
The rebels in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions declared independence from Kiev in April, following Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in March.
More than 2,000 civilians and combatants have been killed since mid-April, when Ukraine sent its troops to oust the rebels.
Ukraine accuses Russia of arming the rebels and sending Russian soldiers into eastern Ukraine - a claim denied by the Kremlin.
Many residential areas in eastern Ukraine have been severely damaged by shelling in recent weeks
Ukrainian government forces are in the midst of a fierce offensive against pro-Russian rebels
The convoy has been parked near the town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky for several days after setting out from near Moscow on 12 August and is said to be carrying 2,000 tonnes of aid.
The Red Cross said Ukrainian and Russian customs officials had agreed to inspect the lorries but the issue was complicated by the Izvaryne checkpoint being controlled by rebels.
On Saturday, Ukraine's government declared the convoy "legal" but Red Cross officials said it had still not been given clearance because of some outstanding security issues.
The BBC's Jonathan Marcus looks at what new footage from Ukraine tells us
"In particular, the ICRC... is expected to get security guarantees for personnel and cargo. Such guarantees for the ICRC should be provided, first of all, by the terrorists groups controlled by Russia, as well as by Russia itself."
The fierce fighting in the region continued on Wednesday, with both Ukrainian government forces and the rebels claiming control of the small town of Ilovaisk in the Donetsk region.
Ilovaisk, a town of 16,000 people, lies to the south-east of the city of Donetsk and is an important railway junction.
Security forces said the town was under government control but the rebels said they had repulsed an attack.
Nine Ukrainian soldiers died overnight on Tuesday, officials said, including an American with Ukrainian citizenship.
Fighting across the Donetsk region left 34 civilians dead and 29 injured on Tuesday alone, local authorities said.
- At least 2,119 people have been killed and 5,043 wounded since mid-April, according to a UN report on 7 August
- 951 civilians have been killed in Donetsk region alone, the official regional authorities said on 20 August
- Official casualty counts only record certified deaths while in some particularly dangerous parts of the war zone, such as Luhansk region, victims are said to have been buried informally, for instance in gardens
- Rebels (and some military sources) accuse the government of concealing the true numbers of soldiers killed
- 155,800 people have fled elsewhere in Ukraine while at least 188,000 have gone to Russia
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