Friday 22 August 2014 16.35 The first trucks in a Russian humanitarian convoy have reached the city of Luhansk in east Ukraine, after Russia ordered a convoy of aid trucks across the border without Kiev's permission.
Ukrainian authorities said 90 trucks had crossed into the country and Ukraine's state security chief said this amounted to a "direct invasion" by Russia.
"They passed into Ukraine without clearance or participation of the International Red Cross or (Ukrainian) border guards," said military spokesman Andriy Lysenko.
"We consider this a direct invasion by Russia of Ukraine," Ukrainian state security chief Valentyn Nalivaychenko said in a separate statement.
However, he said Ukraine would not use any force against the convoy to avoid "provocations".
The trucks, part of a column of about 260 that had been waiting at the border since 14 August is heading towards the rebel stronghold of Luhansk - reportedly accompanied by a small number of separatist fighters.
The convoy was not being escorted by the International Red Cross (ICRC), one of the terms previously agreed by Kiev and Moscow.
The ICRC said security concerns prevented it from accompanying the vehicles.
Kiev and Western capitals have expressed concern that the convoy, held up by wrangling over the terms of passage, the content of the cargo and the role of the ICRC, could be used as a pretext for some form of direct Russian military intervention.
Russia denies the accusation as absurd.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said Russia's actions showed that it could not accept Ukraine's moves towards integration with Europe.
Mr Yatseniuk said the Russian government could not reconcile itself to the fact that Ukraine had taken the decision to sign political and free trade agreements with the European Union which would be ratified in September.
Mr Yatseniuk also said Ukrainian state-owned gas company Naftogaz has put aside €2.3bn to buy gas for the forthcoming winter, warning that the country was not able to survive without supplies of Russian gas.
Mr Yatseniuk said following the decision by Russia's Gazprom to cut supplies to Ukraine on 16 June in a row over pricing Ukraine needs a further 5 billion cubic metres of Russian gas.
Ukraine has been trying to secure more gas from the European Union and cut consumption levels from last year's 50 billion cubic metres.
Earlier the Russian government declared its patience with the delays at the border to be at an end.
"All excuses to delay sending aid have been exhausted," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement, warning against any attempts to disrupt the convoy's movement.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance had observed an alarming build-up of Russian ground and air forces in the vicinity of Ukraine.
"We have also seen transfers of large quantities of advanced weapons, including tanks, armoured personnel carriers and artillery to separatist groups in eastern Ukraine," Mr Rasmussen said in a statement.
Mr Rasmussen said Russia continued to escalate the crisis in eastern Ukraine and that this could lead to further Russian isolation.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian government said that pro-Russian rebels shot down a Ukrainian air force helicopter near Luhansk this week, killing the two-member crew.
The Mi-24 helicopter was shot down on Wednesday said security spokesman Andriy Lysenko, the same day a Ukrainian war plane was downed near the city.
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