DONETSK, August 22. /ITAR-TASS/. Militias have placed roadblocks for safe delivery of a convoy of trucks with Russian humanitarian aid sent to residents in east Ukraine, the army headquarters in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said on Friday.

“Militias have placed traffic control posts and roadblocks for delivery of a convoy of trucks from Russia which is sending humanitarian aid to residents in Novorossia [unrecognized federative union state of Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics]. Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops continue massive artillery shelling on Luhansk and Novoselovka which is situated on the convoy’s route,” news agency Novorossia quoted representatives of Donetsk People’s Republic as saying.

“Militias will stop gunfire along the route Russian humanitarian aid convoy is heading for the city of Luhansk,” Donetsk representatives said, adding that “This is being done in interests of Luhansk residents so that they would be able to receive humanitarian aid freely.”

Some part of Russian humanitarian aid convoy has crossed Ukrainian border in the direction of Luhansk earlier in the day.

“All necessary security guarantees for the convoy’s movement have been given. The ICRC officially recognized these guarantees. The routes for delivering humanitarian aid are well-known and verified by the ICRC mission,” Russian Foreign Ministry said. "All the pretexts to delay the relief supplies to people in the area of the humanitarian catastrophe have been exhausted,” the ministry said, adding that “The Russian side has decided to act. Our convoy with humanitarian cargo is moving in the direction of Luhansk.”

“Already 100 trucks delivering humanitarian aid to people in southeast Ukraine have already passed customs clearance,” chief press officer of the Russian southern customs directorate Rayan Farukshin told ITAR-TASS. “One hundred trucks have passed all customs operations at 2pm Moscow time (10am GMT). All of them have left the customs border-crossing point for Ukraine,” Farukshin said, adding that Ukrainian customs officers did not participate in customs clearance of humanitarian cargo, but were observing the process.