8 months of war in Ukraine

8 months have passed since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Roxana Vasile, 25.10.2022, 13:50

The illegal aggression
of the Russian Federation, a member of the UN Security Council, against Ukraine
is a flagrant violation of the principles and norms of international law, the
Romanian foreign minister said, 8 months after the outbreak of the war in
Romania’s neighboring country. According to Bogdan Aurescu, this aggression triggered
the worst crisis since the end of the Second World War.

The consequences are
multiple, both regionally and globally, through the negative impact on
security, fundamental human rights, global sustainable development, as well as
on energy, food and financial security, the head of Romanian diplomacy pointed
out. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Minister Aurescu said, Romania
has provided humanitarian support to the millions of refugees who have crossed
the national borders. A report published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 8
months after the start of the war shows that, during this time, over 2.6
million Ukrainians have transited Romania and over 86,500 have chosen to stay
on Romanian territory.

Humanitarian measures
included, among other think, the establishment of mobile camps in the counties
in the border areas, the granting of free access to medical services,
education, public transport and the labor market. The Romanian government has constantly
responded to Kyiv’s requests and offered, among other things, fuel, medicine,
food and emergency health care. Through the international humanitarian hub in
Suceava (northeast), which became operational in March, Romania has facilitated
56 humanitarian transports from countries such as Italy, France, Bulgaria,
Austria, Slovenia, Cyprus, Greece or Germany.

The Ministry of
Foreign Affairs also recalls that Romania has been extensively involved in
facilitating the transport and transit of Ukrainian grains to international
markets. The complex measures for the enhancement of transit
capacities, including the logistics capacities of the ports of Constanţa (on
the Black Sea) and Galati (on the Danube), have allowed, until now, the export
of over 5.2 million tons of Ukrainian grain, adding to over 5.5 million tons of
other goods produced in Ukraine.

On a diplomatic level,
Bucharest has been an active part of the multilateral efforts to condemn the Russian
aggression, including the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories, while, as
regards international law, Romania supports the creation of a mechanism for holding
accountable those responsible for the crime of aggression committed in Russia’s
illegal war against Ukraine. (MI)