EU urges to address humanitarian situation in Ukraine with clear consent of Ukrainian authorities
The EU's Political and Security Committee has stressed the need to address the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in full respect of international humanitarian law and principles and with the clear consent of Ukrainian authorities.
"Ambassadors [who gathered for the Political and Security Committee's extraordinary meeting in Brussels on Tuesday] underlined the need to address the humanitarian situation in Ukraine, in full respect of international humanitarian law and principles and with the clear consent of Ukrainian authorities, to further mobilize the international community in this regard, to support the capacity of Ukrainian administration in the delivery of humanitarian aid and to coordinate the relevant Member States' interventions," the committee said in a statement on August 12.
The Political and Security Committee was briefed on the political, security and humanitarian situation in Eastern Ukraine, as well as on recent phone calls by President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
The Political and Security Committee recalled Council Conclusions of June and July 2014, in particular with regards to the ceasefire, border control and the need for Russia to refrain from gathering troops near the Ukrainian border.
The ambassadors recalled the continued EU support to the efforts by the OSCE through the Special Monitoring Mission, Border Observation Mission, and the Trilateral Contact Group, and stressed the need for the EU to continue to actively contribute to the political process, enabling an exit from the current security situation.
The Political and Security Committee had a preliminary discussion about the impact of Russian retaliation to EU sanctions and its legality, and emphasized the need to share with third countries the EU assessment of the situation in this regard. In that context, it welcomes the intention of the Commission to convene this week two technical meetings at expert level on agriculture and trade.
Finally, the ambassadors were briefed on the latest developments with regards to the EU civilian mission EU Ukraine and welcomed the progress in its deployment.
