WASHINGTON: The United States said Sunday it is sending nearly $54 million in new humanitarian aid to Ukraine as it grapples with the Russian invasion.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US is focused on Ukraine's "urgent humanitarian needs as an important part of our response to Russia's premeditated, unprovoked and unjustified attack."
This new assistance to be channelled through NGOs includes "provision of food, safe drinking water, shelter, emergency health care, winterization and protection," Blinken said in a statement.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR says that since Russia first attacked Thursday, more than 368,000 people have fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries, while over 160,000 are estimated to be displaced within Ukraine.
Fighting continues as Russian troops enter Ukraine's 2nd largest city of Kharkiv
Blinken said the new assistance will also help aid groups maintain contact between family members who have been separated by the war, "hopefully leading to reunification in some cases."
Blinken commended neighboring countries for taking in fleeing Ukrainians "and we are engaging diplomatically to support their efforts to keep their borders open and assist those seeking international protection."
The United States has now provided Ukraine with nearly $405 million in aid since Russia first invaded Ukraine in 2014 and seized the Crimean peninsula, the statement said.
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