Republic of Moldova on the brink of famine, Russian media writes

Humanitarian aid from Russia and the EU began to arrive in Moldova. As a result of the severe drought, the country is on the brink of famine. The Russian media writes that the situation was marked as devastating, since 80% of the fields have been seriously affected. Damages caused by the lack of precipitations were estimated at 1 billion USD, half of the national state budget. The Moldovan Government asked for aid the SCI states, as well as the Western countries. Worried about their future, Nezavisimaia Gazeta newspaper reports, the Moldovan peasants have started already a month ago to gather flour supplies, bought from the local shops or brought from Ukraine. The drought reduced minimally the harvest of fruits and vegetables, which on the Chisinau markets cost now as much as in Moscow. Taking all this into consideration, the Government formulated an irrigation plan, but its results will only be seen in 2012. For now, a committee composed of officials and NGO representatives was created in Chisinau, which will monitor the arrival and distribution of the humanitarian aid requested by the president Vladimir Voronin. The appeal received a positive reaction in Russia, EU, Great Britain, Belarus and a number of international organisations. Greece, for example, offered Moldova 100,000 euros in aid, and the Russian region Altai already began proving wheat. All incoming aid will be distributed to the rural administrations directly. Moldovan authorities have calculated the necessary amounts of products: 350,000 tonnes of wheat, 89,000 tonnes of potatoes, 85,000 tonnes of dairy products.