Two special C-130 flights from Pakistan, carrying humanitarian assistance for the people of Ukraine, have reached Poland as part of the country’s goodwill gesture towards those stuck in the war.
State news agency APP and the Pakistan Embassy in Poland shared the development in separate tweets.
The relief items will be delivered to Ukraine by the Polish authorities, according to APP.
The UN human rights office in Geneva, recorded 2,032 civilian casualties in Ukraine – including 780 killed and 1,252 injured. Some 3.2 million civilians have fled to neighbouring countries, it said.
Moreover, Russian missiles struck an area near the airport of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv early on Friday, the mayor said, while Japan and Australia imposed new sanctions on Russian entities as punishment for its invasion.
“Humanitarian assistance from Pakistan for Ukrainian people reached Poland. More than 9 tonnes of emergency medicines, electro-medical equipment, rations and winter bedding was handed over by the Pakistan Embassy in Poland to Polish Governmental Agency, it said in a tweet and shared pictures of the special flight.
In a tweet, Polish Ambassador to Pakistan Piotr A Opalinski thanked Pakistan for the humanitarian aid.
Both the flights landed at the Lublin Airport, Poland. The embassy handed over the relief cargo to the Polish Strategic Reserve Authority.
Pakistan on Tuesday sent 15 tonnes of humanitarian assistance – including emergency medicines, electro-medical equipment, winter bedding, and food and basic items – to Ukraine via special flights during a ceremony at the Noor Khan Base, Chaklala in Rawalpindi.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and National Disaster Management Authority Chairperson Lieutenant-General Akhtar Nawaz handed over the relief items to the Ukrainian Embassy.
Talking to the reporter, FM Qureshi said the special flights would land in Warsaw, Poland, from where the relief items would be delivered to the Ukrainian people.
“The Ukrainian people are in difficulty and facing difficulty,” he said, adding that Pakistan has always called for the resolution of matters. “We think war is not a solution to issues. We think issues should be resolved through dialogue.”
The foreign minister added that Pakistan always had good relations with Ukraine and on the basis of such ties and the premier’s directives, the relief items were sent to the war-torn country. “I hope our small contribution proves to be fruitful for those people. Pakistan is praying for peace.”