MOSCOW, July 11 (RIA Novosti) – A rally in support of the residents of southeastern Ukraine, organized by A Just Russia party was held Friday in the center of Moscow.
“Odessa, Mariupol, Kramatorsk, Slaviansk, Donetsk, Luhansk. The bombs that fly at residential quarters and kindergartens, explode in our hearts too,” Sergei Mironov, leader of the party, said addressing the crowd.
The politician once again called on Kiev authorities to stop the military operation in the southeast of Ukraine and start negotiations.
Mironov noted that thousands of refugees are fleeing from the war, not to Western Ukraine or Europe, but to Russia, particularly the regions of Crimea, Rostov and Moscow. Mironov urged the people to help refugees with everything that is necessary, including financial aid. The leader of A Just Russia said his party and volunteers have already collected donations that will be sent to the residents of southeastern Ukraine whose homes were destroyed by government troops.
The rally started with a moment of silence in remembrance of those passed away in southeastern Ukraine. Among those who attended the event were Russian politicians, representatives of the people’s republics of Donetsk and Luhansk and concerned people who just wanted to show their support for the neighboring nation.
The number of refugees fleeing southeastern Ukraine to Russia has increased dramatically since June as a result of the ongoing military operation launched by Kiev authorities against independence supporters in mid-April.
Several thousand people cross the Ukrainian-Russian border every day, with more than 50 Russian regions hosting the refugees. The majority of them arrive in Rostov Region, where about 30,000 Ukrainian citizens have already been placed.
According to the recent estimates by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), about 110,000 people have fled Ukraine for Russia since the beginning of the crisis.
