Russia's 13th humanitarian aid convoy arrives in eastern Ukraine

Two teams of Russia's 13th humanitarian aid convoy had arrived in Donetsk and Lugansk respectively, Russian Emergencies Ministry said Sunday.

The convoy consists of 170 trucks loaded with over 1,800 tons of relief supplies, including food, medicine, essentials and other necessities, according to the ministry.

"100 trucks have arrived in Donetsk with over 1,100 tons of relief cargoes," and "70 trucks have arrived in Lugansk, delivering over 700 tons of humanitarian aid," said Oleg Voronov, deputy head of the ministry's national crisis management center.

The trucks are now being unloaded, said the official.

Ukrainian customs officers and monitors of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe were present at the inspection posts when the convoy was crossing the Russian-Ukrainian borders.

Since mid-August 2014, Russian Emergencies Ministry had sent 12 humanitarian aid convoys with over 16,000 tons of relief supplies to the turbulent eastern Ukraine, where residents have been suffering from a serious humanitarian crisis due to the ongoing conflict between Ukrainian governmental forces and pro-independence militia since April last year.

The conflict has claimed over 5,300 lives and battles have intensified sharply over the past two weeks.

A flurry of international efforts has been made intensively in an attempt to find a peaceful solution to the Ukrainian crisis, with a new progress to be expected in the coming days. Endi