KIEV, Feb. 5 - The U.S. government intends to provide $16.4 million in new humanitarian assistance to help Ukrainians affected by the violence in Donbas.

"The funding will be used to support the Ukrainian Government's response to the crisis caused by Russia's aggressive actions and will also help alleviate the suffering of people in conflict-affected areas of eastern Ukraine, including Donetsk and Luhansk. Many of these people are extremely vulnerable and unable to leave," the U.S. Department of State said in a press release after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's visit to Kiev on Thursday.