(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) The EU Civil Protection Mechanism (EUCPM) helps deliver aid for displaced people in Iraq as Kristalina Georgieva, EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Hmaniarian Aid, arrived in the country to address the worsening humanitarian situation.
Three EU countries are already providing assistance after a request by the Iraqi authorities to the European Commission's President Jose Manuel Barroso, a press release by the European Commission noted here Monday.
The United Kingdom has sent kitchen sets for the displaced Iraqis, while Sweden and Italy have provided tents, blankets and other in-kind assistance. The European Commission is coordinating the assistance via the European Emergency Response Cooperation Centre.
"Europe stands with the Iraqi people in their hour of need. The activation of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism ensures that European aid can rapidly reach those areas most affected by the fighting," Georgieva said. She is in Iraq for the second time this year, together with Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt. They are consulting with the Iraqi leadership in Baghdad before travelling to the north of the country to assess the humanitarian needs and the response. The EU Commissioner and Bildt are meeting with humanitarian organizations, representatives of national and regional authorities, as well as community leaders from all faiths. An EU humanitarian office is operating in Erbil since May. In June, the European Commission said it provided 5 million euro in response to increasing needs arising from the mass movement of people, and a further 5 million euro was allocated last week bringing the overall humanitarian aid for Iraq to 17 million euro in 2014.
The EUCPM facilitates co-operation in disaster response, preparedness and prevention among 31 European states (28 EU member states plus Macedonia, Iceland and Norway).
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