Brussels, 08/04/2005 (Agence Europe) - A delegation of Commission experts will go to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus from 9 to 16 April, including Chechnya, Ingushetia and Northern Ossetia, to explore the possibilities of Community aid to socio-economic development in the region. The main objective will be to identify needs and envisage practical options for the provision of aid. The Commission is already the largest international donor of humanitarian aid to the Northern Caucasus.
ON Thursday, the Commission approved further humanitarian aid (22.5 million EUR) to the victims of the conflict in Chechnya, to internally displaced people in Ingushetia and Dagestan, and vulnerable groups in the centre and south of the country: psycho-social assistance, reducing the risks from landlines, health, etc. Since the conflict started in autumn 1999, aid from the Commission has totalled 148 million EUR.