You're reading: Red Cross resumes its work in eastern Ukraine

Moscow -- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says it has resumed operations in eastern Ukraine. 

“We are working on that territory; our work resumed over the week in spite of the death of our colleague,” head of the ICRC public relations department in Moscow Valeria Zotikova told reporters on Oct. 31.

She welcomed the initiated delivery of humanitarian aid to southeastern Ukraine and added that the ICRC would be unable to join the process without the consent of the two sides.

“We know there is an initiative and there are negotiations but as long as there is no agreement on technicalities we cannot make the first move towards our involvement. We definitely welcome any initiatives,” Zotikova said.

A source at the ICRC office in Ukraine confirmed to Interfax on Friday that the organization was resuming its activity in eastern Ukraine.

There are no offices in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions as of yet; negotiations with the two sides are in progress and the offices will open after security guarantees are given, he said.

The source noted that the opening of an ICRC office on territory beyond the control of the Ukrainian authorities was not an option.

The ICRC suspended its operations in Ukraine after its worker, Swiss national Laurent DuPasquier, was killed in the shelling of Donetsk on Oct. 2. The Red Cross said security concerns were a major reason for putting its operations on hold.

DuPasquier, the administrator of the ICRC Donetsk office, was killed in a shell explosion near the Red Cross office’s building.

The ICRC office in Donetsk had 20 employees, five of whom were foreigners.