The European Union has provided 1 billion euros in humanitarian aid to Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian aggression, according to the balance sheet provided Thursday by the Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, who has indicated that the priority now is to repair infrastructures damaged by the wave of Russian attacks.
At a press conference from the EU Emergency Response Coordination Center, the Slovenian commissioner said that 500 million of the total has been spent on humanitarian operations in Ukraine through UN agencies, the Red Cross and other organizations.
The other leg is the concrete emergency aid with which the Member States have responded to 190 requests from the Ukrainian authorities since the beginning of the Russian invasion. Through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the EU-27 have provided specific aid requested by Kiev, especially food, medicines, medical and agricultural equipment and ambulances, in what Lenarcic described as «the largest and longest operation» in the history of this instrument.
In addition, the head of Crisis Management pointed out that the EU, with its strategic reserve, is providing concrete aid, in addition to that offered by the Member States. In this case, it is providing shelter material for internally displaced persons and potassium tablets to prevent possible radiation in the area of the Zaporiyia nuclear power plant.
PRIORITY IS SHELTER AND ENERGY FOR WINTER «Winter is almost here and it is our priority for humanitarian aid. The needs are even more pronounced after the systematic destruction of critical infrastructure in Ukraine which has caused substantial damage to the electricity and water networks,» he stressed.
According to him, the EU has already been preparing for Ukraine’s needs since before the summer and has been ahead of schedule with the shipment of 500 electricity generators, which should be doubled in view of the Russian attacks on energy facilities.
Likewise, the European bloc has helped through technical programs to rehabilitate water and electricity systems that serve as basic services to thousands of Ukrainian civilians and has indicated that it is preparing to send more equipment to repair this type of facilities.
Faced with the growing humanitarian needs of Ukraine, Lenarcic said that Brussels is asking the Member States to provide sufficient resources to cope with the increased requests coming from Ukraine, while pointing out that it will increase the European strategic reserve to ensure a response to Kiev.
