The United States on Friday demanded Russia "immediately" withdraw an aid convoy of vehicles from Ukraine and warned of further international sanctions if Moscow did not respect Kiev's sovereignty.
Russia sent dozens of aid trucks into rebel-held eastern Ukraine earlier on Friday without Kiev’s approval, saying its patience had worn out with the Ukrainian government’s stalling tactics.
"Russia must remove its vehicles and its personnel from the territory of Ukraine immediately. Failure to do so will result in additional costs and isolation," Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters.
The United Nations Security Council was to hold emergency consultations on the convoy Friday at the request of Lithuania.
NATO's secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, called Russia's unilateral decision to send more than 130 trucks filled with what it called humanitarian aid into rebel-held areas “a blatant breach of Russia's international commitments'' and “a further violation of Ukraine's sovereignty by Russia.''
Rasmussen said in a statement that Friday's convoy to Luhansk could deepen a crisis “which Russia itself has created and has continued to fuel.''
Rasmussen said the action has coincided with “a major escalation in Russian military involvement in Eastern Ukraine since mid-August, including the use of Russian forces.” Rasmussen urged Moscow "to stop destabilizing Ukraine."
http://www.france24.com/en/20140822-russia-sends-aid-convoy-ukraine-crisis-donetsk/
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