ROSTOV-ON-DON, July 2 (RIA Novosti) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov intends to draw foreign media attention to the Ukrainian refugee problem, the government of Russia’s Rostov Region said Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, Russia’s top diplomat, Sergei Lavrov, met with the governor of Rostov Region, Vasily Golubev, to discuss the flood of refugees coming to the region from troubled Ukraine.
Lavrov in particular asked Golubev about foreign media attention to the issue.
“Judging by Vasily Golubev’s comments, there is no particular interest. The Russian foreign minister expressed his concern over the issue. He intends to draw foreign media attention to this problem,” the statement by the regional government said.
Over 21,000 Ukrainian citizens have found shelter in Rostov Region, including 8,000 children. The bulk of the refugees have been taken in by families, the rest have been housed in temporary accommodation centers. Some of the refugees are also being moved to other parts of the country.
According to the recent estimates by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) about 110,000 people have fled Ukraine to Russia since the beginning of the crisis.
Vladimir Putin earlier instructed the Russian government to take urgent measures to support the regions sheltering Ukrainian refugees.
A special task force has been set up to deal with temporary social arrangements for the refuges. Earlier this week, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev finalized the list of members for the task force.