The European Commission has € 200,000 in humanitarian funding for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The funding is part of the EU’s overall contribution to the Disaster Emergency Fund, which is managed by the IFRC, according to a Commission statement. This direct EU funding will support the IFRC and the Belarusian Red Cross in providing the necessary assistance, such as food, hygiene kits, blankets and first aid kits.
The EU has mobilized an additional € 500,000 in humanitarian funding and is currently in contact with its partner humanitarian organizations to implement the funds.
Crisis Management Commissioner Janes Lenarsic said: “The EU is supporting its humanitarian partners to help alleviate the suffering of people stranded at the border and in other parts of Belarus. “I urge the humanitarian organizations on both sides to continue to reach out to this large group of refugees and migrants in order to provide them with urgent assistance.”
The European Commission is ready to provide additional humanitarian funding in response to clearly defined humanitarian needs if the access of partner humanitarian organizations to Belarus is further improved.
All EU humanitarian aid is based on international humanitarian principles. The EU provides humanitarian assistance based on the needs of people affected by man-made and natural disasters, with particular attention to the most vulnerable victims. The aid is distributed impartially to the affected populations, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, age, nationality or political beliefs, the Commission said in a statement.
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