Britain pledges $12.3 million for housing, power for displaced Ukrainians

March 28 (UPI) -- The British government has pledged $12.3 million in funds to support a joint project with Poland to provide homes and power for displaced Ukrainians.

"The U.K. and Poland will build two major temporary villages in west and east Ukraine to provide vital housing to those forced from their homes by barbaric Russian attacks," reads a press release from British Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.

"The two accommodation villages in Lviv, in western Ukraine and Poltava, in the east will offer accommodation for more than 700 of the most vulnerable Ukrainians who have fled heavy fighting on the frontlines or lost their homes due to Russian shelling," the press release continues.

"Around 6 million people are currently displaced within Ukraine, having been forced to leave their homes and facing freezing winter condition due to the brutal Russian war of aggression against Ukraine," the office said.

The program seeks to provide up to $3.2 million worth of generators to provide power for up to 450,000 people in the frontline areas which have been reclaimed by Ukrainian forces.

"For the past year, Putin has continued to target civilian homes and infrastructure with the Ukrainian people paying a heavy price. This new U.K.-Poland partnership will help bring light, heat and homes to those most in need," said British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly.

The Polish government also praised the initiative,

"Today, together with the United Kingdom, we stand side-by-side in providing shelter, warmth and above all, in providing hope for the Ukrainian IDPs, both in the west and in central-east of the country," said Polish Foreign Minster Zbigniew Rau.

The U.K.-Poland shelter project is being delivered via Solidarity Fund Poland.