Sir Keir Starmer has been issued a desperate plea by an aid worker inUkraineon the four-year anniversary ofRussia's full-scale invasion. Alain Homsy, the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) Ukraine Country Director, said Ukrainians fear the war being overtaken by other issues in world leaders' minds, and adecrease in foreign aid spendingwill have consequences. He said: "I think it's important that the Ukrainian conflict is not forgotten. I think, politically, it's an important country when it comes to European support. But I think there is, there could be, eventually some donor fatigue."

He added that there are "a lot of other crises in the world, like Sudan, like Gaza, who have also very big needs". But, Mr Homsy, who has to descend into a bomb shelter in Kyiv in the face of Russian attacks, emphasised that it's important to make sure that the Ukrainian conflict, and the needs of its populace, are high up in the considerations of other nations.

When asked specifically about Britain, the aid worker said: "I mean, to be honest, I think every Government can do more, but there are projects that are being funded by the UK Government, the FCDO... So, yes, obviously there's always room to do more, and we hope that the Government will be seeing that the needs are still growing, and that they can support the Ukrainian Government and Ukrainian people for a longer period of time."

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The Prime Minister announced in February last year that the UK would reduce foreign aid spending from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income (GNI) by 2027 - the lowest level since 1999 - in order to boost defence funding.

When asked if this worries him, Mr Homsy said: "Absolutely. I mean, it's not just the UK, but we saw what happened in the US, and we're seeing a trend in European governments that are reducing their foreign aid. So yes, of course, this is not just an issue forUkraine, but humanitarian aid in general.

"So yes, we're very concerned... that people that are in most need will not be getting it or getting enough of it in the near future."

Less aid would affect healthcare support, Mr Homsy said, such as provisions at clinics and hospitals.

Healthcare workers have a lot of psychosocial needs, the aid worker emphasised.

Source: Daily Express :: World Feed