Geneva/Moscow (ICRC) – The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Jakob Kellenberger, is in
Moscow this week for talks with members of the Russian government.
Mr Kellenberger will be seeking to enhance the ICRC's dialogue and cooperation with the Russian authorities on global,
regional and bilateral issues of humanitarian concern.
Discussions during the visit will include topics of particular concern to the ICRC, such as the whereabouts of persons who have gone
missing in the northern Caucasus.
The meetings will also serve to discuss ICRC activities in the Russian Federation, including the shift from emergency aid to recovery programmes in the
northern Caucasus.
The ICRC's 2008 budget for Russia is close to 17 million dollars, of which almost 11 million will go for work in the northern Caucasus.
The funds will be used
for various programmes, including water and sanitation projects, mine awareness, promoting international humanitarian law, and support for micro-economic initiatives to help particularly vulnerable
people become more financially independent.
For further information, please contact:
Yuriy Shafarenko, ICRC Moscow, tel: +7 495 626 5426 or +7 903 545 3534
Marçal
Izard, ICRC Geneva, tel: +41 22 730 2458 or +41 79 217 3224
A woman covers her face to protect from teargas during ethnic violence in Nairobi January 2, 2008. President Mwai Kibaki's government accused rival Raila Odinga's party of unleashing "genocide" in Kenya ...
