Statement of the Joint Coordination Headquarters for Humanitarian Response in Ukraine (April 2, 2022)
The Russian Federation, guided exclusively by the principles of international humanitarian law, is continuing its large-scale measures to provide comprehensive assistance to the population in the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, as well as in the controlled areas of Ukraine.
For this purpose, since 10:00 a.m. (Moscow time) on April 2, 2022, the Russian side has opened humanitarian corridors in the Kiev, Chernigov, Sumy, Kharkov and Mariupol directions: one to Russia and one through Kiev-controlled territory towards Ukraine's western borders.
Seven more corridors in the Zaporozhya and Donetsk directions have been declared by the Ukrainian side for the current day, of which, as before, none is towards the Russian Federation.
Currently, the Russian Armed Forces strictly observe the ceasefire on all routes, including those declared by the Ukrainian side.
The Russian side does not ignore any positive humanitarian initiatives coming from both foreign states and international organisations.
Following personal requests by the President of France and the Federal Chancellor of Germany to President Putin of the Russian Federation, the Russian Armed Forces opened an additional humanitarian corridor for the evacuation of civilians and foreign nationals from Mariupol to Zaporozhye (with an intermediate point at Berdyansk) on March 31, 1 and 2 April 2022.
It is important to note that these humanitarian operations involved the direct participation of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, as well as the International Committee of the Red Cross, which were notified in advance of the activities to be carried out.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has reported unpreparedness to conduct humanitarian operations in the Mariupol direction during this period.
On April 1 and 2, 2022, the International Committee of the Red Cross expressed its full readiness to take part in humanitarian operations in the Mariupol direction, but at the same time, no practical actions were taken by its representatives to organise a humanitarian convoy or form bus convoys.
On April 1, 2022, a humanitarian convoy of 10 buses, accompanied by representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross, left Zaporozhye for Mariupol, significantly behind schedule. On the route, staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross made unintentional stops, drove away from the main convoy in secured vehicles bearing the ICRC logo, drove off in an unknown direction and then returned. As a result of this disorganised action, the convoy was unable to reach Mariupol and by April 1, 2022 had only reached an intermediate point (Berdyansk city).
On April 2, 2022, the second part of the humanitarian convoy of 15 buses left Zaporozhye also with a huge delay for unknown reasons and has not yet arrived even at the intermediate point (Berdyansk city).
Draw the attention of the International Committee of the Red Cross to the inadmissibility of destructive actions in the organisation of refugee evacuations.
Representatives of the organisation, while declaring to the international community humane principles aimed at saving the people of Mariupol, in practice showed their inability to provide any assistance in preparing for the evacuation of civilians and foreign nationals from Mariupol.
The only justification for ICRC staff is that the Ukrainian side has not fulfilled its obligation to open a humanitarian corridor to Mariupol. At the same time, the remaining fighters of nationalist formations did not fully observe the ceasefire during this period, but instead engaged in intensive indiscriminate fire with small arms and mortars in almost all directions, including in the alleged humanitarian corridor.
The Russian Federation continues to fulfil its humanitarian obligations to save civilians.
Despite all the difficulties and obstacles posed by Kiev, in the past 24 hours, without the participation of the Ukrainian authorities, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Committee of the Red Cross, 14,168 people have been evacuated to Russia from the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics and dangerous areas of Ukraine, including 891 children, and a total of 557,565 people, of whom 111,870 are children, since the start of the special military operation.
The state border of the Russian Federation was crossed by 69,367 vehicles, of which 3,300 per day.
In Mariupol, also without any involvement from the Ukrainian side, 121,497 people have already been rescued from the lawlessness of the nationalists, including 2,464 in the past 24 hours.
A significant part of the population forcibly held by radicals in Ukrainian cities is still looking for any opportunities to evacuate to Russia, as evidenced by numerous appeals of citizens through various channels to the official structures of the Russian Federation.
Over the past day, another 1,124 such appeals have been received, and in total there are already 2,734,699 of 2,123 settlements in Ukraine in the database.
In addition, more than 60 foreign vessels remain blocked in Ukrainian ports. The threat of shelling and high mine danger created by official Kiev in its internal waters and territorial sea prevents vessels from safely leaving the ports and reaching the open sea.
In confirmation of this, the Russian Federation is opening daily from 08:00 to 19:00 (Moscow time) a humanitarian corridor, which is a safe lane south-west of Ukraine's territorial sea, 80 nautical miles long and 3 nautical miles wide.
Detailed information in English and Russian on the modus operandi of the maritime humanitarian corridor is broadcast daily every 15 minutes on VHF radio on 14 and 16 international channels.
Once again we warn the entire international community that there is a threat of Ukrainian mines drifting off their anchor along the coasts of the Black Sea states. Once again, we call on the International Maritime Organization and the management of ship-owning companies to influence official Kiev to take measures aimed at unblocking and securing the departure of foreign vessels from Ukrainian ports.
More than 9,500 temporary accommodation centres continue to operate in the regions of the Russian Federation. A sufficient number of motor vehicles, including comfortable buses, are located at the checkpoints to take refugees to their chosen places of residence or to temporary accommodation facilities where medical care and hot meals are organized.
Federal executive authorities, together with the subjects of the Russian Federation, various public organizations, patriotic movements, continue to accumulate humanitarian aid.
The greatest contributors to the relief effort were:
Ministry of the Russian Federation for Civil Defence, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters, Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, Federal Agency for State Reserves, Federal Tax Service, Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography, Federal Agency for Nationalities;
The Republics of Buryatia and Tatarstan, the Arkhangelsk, Moscow, Tula, Voronezh and Rostov regions, the Krasnodar region and Moscow;
Among political parties and non-profit organisations: United Russia, the All-Russian Public Movement "People's Front", the All-Russian Public Organisation of Veterans "Battle Brotherhood", the autonomous non-profit organisation for the support of humanitarian programmes "Russian Humanitarian Mission", the All-Russian public organisation "Boxing Federation of Russia", the All-Russian public organisation "Union of Armenians of Russia" and the All-Russian public and state organisation "Union of Women of Russia".
More than 20,500 tons of basic necessities, food and medicines have been prepared at the collection points.
Since March 2, 7,489.3 tons of humanitarian cargo have already been delivered to Ukraine, 733 humanitarian actions have been carried out, including 9 actions in Zaporozhye, Kharkov and Kherson regions, as well as in Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, during which 362 tons of basic necessities, medicines and food were transferred to the civilian population of the liberated areas.
On April 2, 16 humanitarian actions have been planned and are currently being carried out in Kharkov, Kherson, Chernigov and Zaporozhye regions, in Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, during which 483 tons of basic necessities, medicine and food will be distributed.