Kyiv, Sep 17 (V7N)-  Ukrainian officials have extended an invitation to the United Nations (UN) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to join humanitarian aid operations in areas under Ukrainian control in Russia’s Kursk region. This announcement follows more than a month of Ukrainian cross-border operations in the region, where Ukrainian forces have reportedly taken control of nearly 100 towns, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. The report was confirmed by Reuters.

The invitation was issued by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiha, following a visit to Ukraine’s Sumi region, from which the Ukrainian military has launched its operations into the neighbouring Kursk region. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Sibiha stated that the Ukrainian forces were not only carrying out military actions but also providing humanitarian aid and facilitating the safe evacuation of civilians in the conflict zone.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs further emphasized that the invitation was issued in light of the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Kursk region. The ministry underscored the importance of protecting basic human rights and requested the ICRC to monitor compliance with international humanitarian law during the operations.

However, the response from Russia has been less accommodating. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed the invitations as "provocative," and signaled that Moscow was unlikely to allow participation from the UN or the ICRC in the region. This stance comes as the Russian Defence Ministry claimed on Monday that it had successfully recaptured two villages from Ukrainian forces in Kursk.

A Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson criticized the Kremlin's rejection of the invitation, accusing Moscow of ignoring its own humanitarian needs and fearing international scrutiny over the situation in the Kursk region.

Meanwhile, ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric is currently in Moscow, where she is expected to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. This diplomatic engagement follows a tragic incident last week in which three Ukrainian ICRC staff were killed, and two others injured, by Russian shelling in the Donetsk region. Spoljaric has publicly condemned the attacks.

The international community now awaits responses from both the UN and ICRC regarding their potential involvement in the Kursk region, though the invitation has sparked tensions with Moscow over the transparency of the ongoing operations.

END/AJ/SMA