The head of the Ukrainian Red Cross emergency department says efforts to help those affected by the war with Russia have been hampered by a dispute surrounding his international counterpart and his role in the conflict. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been accused of being too cooperative with Moscow and has been criticized for considering opening an office in Rostov-on-Don, a town in southern Russia near the Ukrainian border, which some say could to be used to facilitate the deportation of Ukrainians. ICRC President Peter Maurer has further angered critics by posing for a handshake with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following a recent meeting in Moscow. “They come for nothing”: Ukrainians-Canadians hosting families fleeing Russia war call for federal support This week, a group of Ukrainian lawmakers called on the ICRC to reconsider its plans for the Russian office. More than 3,000 people, including representatives from dozens of Ukrainian humanitarian organizations, signed an open letter to Mr Maurer calling on his organization to do more to stop the evacuations and work more effectively with local volunteers. The Ukrainian-Canadian Congress has also sent a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trindade asking him to express concern about Rostov-on-Don’s office and to question how donations are being made to the Canadian Red Cross in Ukraine. ICRC officials say the allegations are baseless – that the Red Cross will never evacuate people against their will. The organization said it works with all parties in conflict zones to help those in need and always remains neutral. He set up a temporary office in Rostov-on-Don when fighting broke out in eastern Ukraine in 2014 to help people fleeing the conflict, but that office closed in 2018. Any new branch would serve a purpose similar to that of its shelters. Red Cross in other border countries, such as Poland, Romania and Hungary, helping thousands of refugees fleeing the war. “To be clear: the ICRC does not want to open an office in southern Russia to ‘filter’ the Ukrainians, as many reports claim. “We are not opening a refugee camp or any other type of camp,” the organization said in a statement. He added that he was facing “deliberate, targeted attacks that use false narratives and misinformation to discredit the ICC”. Taras Luginov, who heads the Ukrainian Red Cross emergency department, said the outcry had damaged the local charity, which is completely separate from the ICC. “After all the negative coverage of the Red Cross, by Facebook, by the government, it just has a boomerang in our organization,” he said in an interview in Kyiv on Wednesday. His team is already in desperate need of supplies and protective equipment for volunteers, he said, and the controversy has left many questioning the integrity of the Red Cross in general. Mr Luginov said part of the problem was the public’s lack of understanding of the global structure of the Red Cross. There are three distinct branches: national organizations such as the Ukrainian Red Cross. the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which cooperates with national organizations; and the ICC, which operates in conflict zones and is the custodian of the Geneva Conventions. The ICRC receives funding from governments that have signed the treaties, which govern the treatment of prisoners of war and civilians during the war. Mr Luginov said he had had tense discussions with the ICC at the start of the war about the lack of assistance in some areas of heavy fighting, including Mariupol and Kiev. And he has had an ongoing dispute with the international team for years over efforts to train the Ukrainian army in first aid, something the ICRC has denied. However, he said that relations have improved recently and he has no doubts about the neutrality of the ICC. “I know that ICC is very neutral. They do not make any conflict. “ Red Cross volunteer Valentina Cherkay said she had reacted as a result of the controversy. Ms. Cherkay is a nurse who also does large shifts of volunteers in a Red Cross tent at the Kiev railway station. The small business helped a steady stream of people from the start of the war, often healing wounds and other wounds. “A lot of bad words are being said to us and some people are becoming more aggressive,” he said on Wednesday. “They think the Red Cross is bad. “They think that if the ICC talks to the Russian side, they support Russia.” Ms Cherkay said the misinformation had unfairly tarnished the reputation of both Red Cross organizations. “The ICC needs to talk to both sides of the armed conflict and they are just trying to do their job. “There is a lot of manipulation on social media,” he said. “I know they try to do their best.” Alyona Synenko, a spokeswoman for the Kyiv-based ICRC, said the charity was concerned about the damage done by criticism of the Red Cross movement. “We are extremely concerned about that,” he said. “Dissemination of misinformation can be dangerous.” He said the ICRC is working closely with the local Red Cross and has helped distribute 500 tonnes of humanitarian supplies. It has also opened a safe haven around Sumy in northeastern Ukraine to help evacuate people to other Ukrainian cities. He added that Mr. Maurer traveled to Moscow after spending five days in Ukraine and meeting with top government officials. “We are talking to both sides on behalf of the civilian population affected by this conflict,” he said. In a statement, the Canadian Red Cross said it had raised more than $ 128 million to help people in Ukraine, including $ 30 million in equivalent funding from the federal government. He added that $ 82.5 million had been allocated for relief efforts on the ground, “with about two-thirds of this amount going to help people in Ukraine and one-third of that amount to help people from Ukraine displaced in surrounding countries “. Our Morning and Afternoon Newsletters are compiled by Globe editors, giving you a brief overview of the day’s most important headlines. Register today.
