A humanitarian convoy of the Russian Emergencies Ministry remained blocked on the border between Serbia and Kosovo on Thursday, a ministry official said.
A total of 25 trucks carrying electric generators, blankets, clothes, food and cooking gear were blocked by the European Union Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) after rejecting an escort. The proposed escort included customs and police officers of Kosovo Albanians whose legitimate authority in the region Russia does not recognize.
“We hope that the issue will be resolved in the near future. The Russian Emergencies Ministry’s humanitarian convoy is on the border with Kosovo and is completely ready to set off for its destination point – the northern part of Mitrovica,” said Yury Brazhnikov, the head of the ministry’s external relations department.
He said the Russian convoy was supported by various UN bodies, including the UN commissioner for humanitarian affairs.
“There is no humanitarian crisis at the moment, but it may emerge. The region has a lot of humanitarian problems, including long-standing unresolved issues, such as destroyed hospitals and electricity supply disruptions. And they must be solved ahead of the cold season,” the Emergencies Ministry official said.
The humanitarian cargo weighing a total of 284 metric tons is to be taken to the Red Cross department in Kosovska Mitrovica, the largest city in the predominantly Serb-populated northern Kosovo.
Another Russian convoy is currently some 60 kilometers away from the Romanian-Serbian border.
Kosovo, a landlocked region with a population of mainly ethnic Albanians, declared its independence from Serbia in February 2008. Ethnic Serbs account for up to 10 percent of Kosovo’s two-million population.
Both Serbia and Russia have refused to recognize Kosovo’s independence.
Source ria.ru
