Interfax: Some 100,000 Ukrainians request refugee status or temporary asylum in Russia – migration service

MOSCOW. Aug 21 (Interfax) – Up to 100,000 Ukrainian citizens have applied for refugee status or temporary asylum in Russia since the conflict broke out in Ukraine’s southeastern regions in April, first deputy head of the Russian Federal Migration Service Yekaterina Yegorova told Interfax on Thursday.

“The latest information available indicates that 99,364 people have already requested refugee status or temporary asylum,” she said.

Approximately 200,000 Ukrainian citizens planning to stay in Russia for a long period of time have applied to the Russian Federal Migration Service concerning their legal status since the beginning of 2014, Yegorova said.

More than 780,000 citizens of Ukraine have arrived in Russia since April 1, she said.

“Most of them are staying in Russia’s regions near the border with Ukraine,” she added