MOSCOW, June 25 (RIA Novosti) – Russian President Vladimir Putin told the government Wednesday to develop urgent measures to support Russian regions that have seen an inflow of refugees from violence-hit Ukraine.
“I asked to think of how we can help people who found themselves in the conflict zones and who are crossing into our territory. It’s evident that the number of refugees has grown to an extent when it is hard for regions to cope on their own. [I] asked the government to think of ways to support the regions,” Putin said at a meeting of members of the Russian government.
The president added that the cabinet of ministers has already prepared a series of measures.
Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak said during the meeting that the government would prepare a decision on a lump sum allowance for Ukrainian refugees and medical treatment by Monday.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree allocating 240 million rubles (about $7 million) to Rostov Region, which is receiving the bulk of the flow of refugees, for the maintenance of temporary accommodation centers and the sustenance of Ukrainian citizens coming to Russia.
According to Russia’s Federal Migration Service, more than 400,000 Ukrainians are currently staying in the Russian regions bordering Ukraine. About 7,000 people have applied for temporary asylum and refugee status in Russia.
A senior Emergency Ministry official said earlier that Russia is ready to accept about 40,000 additional refugees from the troubled country.
Last week a delegation of the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) arrived in Rostov Region to meet with local government officials and praised Russia’s contribution to accommodating refugees from Ukraine.
