Yet "convoy" sounds weird in this situation RT “@RFERL: This is what Russia's aid convoy looks like. http://t.co/SyCrOEIswK”
— Natalia Melnychuk (@pravolivo) August 12, 2014
Here are some more details from our news desk regarding the Russian aid convoy and whether Kyiv is will to let it cross its borders:
A Ukrainian military spokesman says a humanitarian convoy being dispatched to eastern Ukraine by Russia will not be admitted into the country.
Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, said the convoy will not be let in until it has been certified by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
A convoy of nearly 300 Russian trucks headed for Ukraine early on August 12, one day after agreement was reached on an international humanitarian relief mission.
Russian officials said the trucks were carrying 2,000 tons of aid, from baby food to sleeping bags.
The ICRC said it had no information on what the trucks were carrying or where they were going.
Ukrainian and Western officials have voiced concerns that Russia could use the pretext of humanitarian aid to send troops into eastern Ukraine where government forces are fighting pro-Russian separatists.
(AP, Reuters)
Pretty good Russian convoy explainer from the BBC's Patrick Jackson:
Russian aid or Trojan Horse? - My Q&A on the aid convoy http://t.co/zA72lwKwhR #Ukraine #гумпомощь
— Patrick Jackson (@patrickgjackson) August 12, 2014
If #Russia aid convoy passes through #Kharkiv- big question: what will #Kernes/@GennadyKernes do?
— Thomas C. Theiner (@noclador) August 12, 2014
NBU weakens official exchange rate to historic maximum to almost Hr 13.14/$1 http://t.co/HV8JFuD4BD
— Kyiv Post (@KyivPost) August 12, 2014
On Donbass roads. pic.twitter.com/JbnGHa7Bo5
— Simon Kruse (@crusoes) August 12, 2014
Our news desk has issued this item on Putin's upcoming trip to Crimea:
Russia's President Vladimir Putin will travel this week to Crimea, where he will meet with his top security chiefs and address members of government and parliament traveling with him.
The presidential press service said Putin will chair a meeting of members of the Security Council in Sevastopol tomorrow.
On August 14, he will discuss key domestic issues, "including those in Crimea," with State Duma lawmakers and federal ministers.
The United States and the European Union have imposed a raft of sanctions on Russia over its annexation of Crimea in March, as well as its perceived support of pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev and State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin will be among the officials accompanying Putin on his visit to Crimea.
(Reuters, ITAR-TASS)
A stranger streamed in Simferopol… #Strelkov via @nomoreanry pic.twitter.com/YvVaMdnnWN
— Oliver Carroll (@olliecarroll) August 12, 2014
Deep in DNR territory, eyewitnesses say 2 DNR fighters shot dead in this truck by partisans who drove 2 black cars. pic.twitter.com/tbO7kCdFNd
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) August 12, 2014
Russian soldiers brag on Internet about repainting 300 KAMAZ trucks to carry aid http://t.co/xlCoUD4nff
— Katya Gorchinskaya (@kgorchinskaya) August 12, 2014