Undisputed world boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine) will play in a charity football match in support of the Ukrainian Red Cross (URC) in Lisbon.
“Today, Lisbon will host a large-scale charity Match of Legends, which will bring together world football stars and aims to raise over EUR 1 million to support charitable organizations, including the Ukrainian Red Cross. The undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk will join the match,” the URC announced on Facebook on Monday.
The World Legends team will include such football stars as Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Del Piero (Italy) and Javier Zanetti (Argentina).
The funds raised during the match will help the Ukrainian Red Cross continue to respond quickly to emergencies, carry out evacuation measures, restore housing, and provide psychosocial support to those in need.
The Luxembourg Red Cross has expanded its activities in Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, providing assistance to health institutions.
“Since as early as 2022, the Luxembourg Red Cross has been helping the Irpin branch of the Heart Institute, which, like many buildings in the city, was severely damaged by shelling… The Luxembourg Red Cross, in partnership with the Ukrainian Red Cross, has helped in the shortest possible time to rebuild the damaged treatment buildings of the medical institution and start receiving patients,” the Ukrainian Red Cross (URC) said on Facebook on Tuesday.
The Luxembourg Red Cross also financed this year the purchase of modern industrial washing equipment for the Heart Institute branch. Between 2023 and 2024, the organization helped create a safe shelter. The 32 m² basement of the Irpen Heart Institute was renovated, sanitary rooms were arranged and a ventilation system with automatic and manual modes was installed. In addition, the shelter has a supply of drinking water, benches for seating, backup lighting and communication facilities have been installed, allowing 30 people to be comfortably accommodated for 48 hours.
The Luxembourg Red Cross plans to continue providing assistance to the most vulnerable categories of the Ukrainian population, responding quickly to the urgent calls caused by the war. Among the priorities of the organization is support of awareness-raising activities on prevention of cardiovascular diseases, tuberculosis, diabetes.
The Luxembourg Red Cross will continue to maintain close cooperation with the UCC, government agencies and local authorities.
The Ukrainian Red Cross has received the highest award of the Japanese Red Cross for its selfless work during the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian Red Cross has received the highest award of the Japanese Red Cross for the selfless work of volunteers and staff during the full-scale war in Ukraine,” the Ukrainian Red Cross reported on Facebook on Sunday.
The award was presented to Ukrainian Red Cross Director General Maksym Dotsenko during a meeting with Japanese Red Cross President Atsushi Seike in Tokyo.
Later, the Ukrainian Red Cross leaders took part in an open meeting dedicated to the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and the problems and challenges faced by Ukrainians. The participants learned about the ways the Ukrainian Red Cross is helping to overcome the humanitarian crisis in the country and the long-term perspective of supporting Ukraine.
The open seminar was attended by more than 200 people, including Japanese Red Cross staff, representatives of the public sector, government and state agencies of Japan.
“In the short term, we are preparing for winter. It is going to be difficult. Today, Ukraine’s energy system is suffering significant damage due to constant missile attacks. Ukrainians are already suffering from power cuts. In winter, the load on the energy system will increase, as the population will need to be supplied with heat in addition to electricity. In the long term, our work will be focused on the mental and physical rehabilitation of civilians and veterans,” said Dotsenko at the briefing.
According to Ilya Kletskovskiy, Deputy Director General of the Ukrainian Red Cross, the main task now is “not to let the world forget about the ongoing war in Ukraine and to help as many Ukrainians as possible.”
More than a thousand families have received monetary assistance from the Ukrainian Red Cross for rehabilitation.
“1,196 families from Kiev and Mykolaiv have received monetary assistance from the Ukrainian Red Cross for the rehabilitation of children and adults totaling more than 35 million hryvnias,” the Ukrainian Red Cross said on Facebook on Thursday.
The Ukrainian Red Cross provided cash assistance to patients undergoing rehabilitation at the National Children’s Specialized Hospital of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine “Okhmatdet” in Kiev and several rehabilitation centers in Mykolaiv under the Cash for Rehabilitation program supported by the British Red Cross. Each patient under the program received 30 thousand hryvnias.
“This amount was determined based on the results of a preliminary survey among families whose children or relatives are undergoing or need physical rehabilitation in medical institutions of the country, in particular, in the Okhmatdet hospital in Kiev and institutions in Mykolaiv,” said Elena Skrypnikova, head of the Innovative Financing Department of the Ukrainian Red Cross.
According to her, the categories of injuries and illnesses for which monetary assistance is provided have also been defined: rehabilitation after wounds received as a result of hostilities or the action of explosive objects; rehabilitation services due to congenital diseases; rehabilitation due to chronic diseases, in particular, oncological, cardiovascular and others.
The majority of children and adults who received cash assistance already have disability status or are in the process of obtaining it. In addition, families surveyed indicated a need for auxiliary aids such as wheelchairs, walkers, hand or foot orthoses.
The Red Cross Society of Ukraine (RCSU) and the Austrian Red Cross have opened a renovated shelter in the village of Lopushna in Lviv region.
“In order for the shelter to become habitable for persons who have lost their housing, the heating system, utilities, ceiling, floor and roof overhaul were repaired. The temporary housing is fully provided with beds, household appliances and hygiene kits,” OKCU said on Facebook on Saturday.
The shelter can accommodate about 40 people. Currently, the first residents are already moving into the renovated building.
The budget of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for the provision of humanitarian assistance in Ukraine has been increased to 250 million Swiss francs, the organization’s president, Peter Maurer, said.
“Some 75 million Swiss francs until February 24 (Russian invasion of Ukraine) per year was the approximate budget of the International Committee of the Red Cross for Ukraine. We asked our donors for 150 million Swiss francs. As a result, now our budget for Ukraine is 250 million Swiss francs. Then there are donors who are very generous in everything related to the situation in Ukraine, and this will allow us to expand our activities,” Maurer said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine and the Ukraine 24 TV Channel.
According to him, the ICRC’s humanitarian operation in Ukraine is the largest in the world in recent decades.
“Just for comparison: before the escalation in Ukraine, the largest Red Cross operations were carried out in Afghanistan, Syria. That is, with a budget of 180-190 million. Now Ukraine is our largest operation in the world,” he said.
Maurer also noted that the ICRC has already delivered 200 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Ukraine and is ready to start distributing it.
Among other types of support, he named the intention of the organization to locally purchase goods and receive services, to support the economy. The president of the humanitarian organization also said that he had agreed with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal on the implementation of a cash support scheme for the country, similar to the one during the COVID-19 crisis.
