US, India, Japan, Australia discuss Ukraine 'humanitarian crisis'

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The leaders of the US, India, Japan and Australia discussed Thursday the ongoing "humanitarian crisis" in Ukraine prompted by Russia's invasion of its eastern European neighbor.

The group, collectively known as the Quad, said in a statement that they agreed to create a new "humanitarian assistance and disaster relief mechanism" intended to better prepare for it to "meet future humanitarian challenges in the Indo-Pacific and provide a channel for communication as they each address and respond to the crisis in Ukraine."

Separately, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and US President Joe Biden agreed to an in-person meeting in Tokyo "in the coming months."

Russia's war on Ukraine, which began Feb. 24, has been met international outrage with the EU, US and UK, among others, implementing tough financial sanctions on Moscow.

According to UN figures, 227 civilians have been killed and 525 injured in Ukraine since the start of the war. Ukrainian authorities, however, put the death toll at more than 2,000.

More than 1 million people have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, according to the UN Refugee Agency.