Thousands of Ukrainians arrive in Russia to escape conflict

Thousands of Ukrainians are entering Russia in recent months to be safe from violence engulfing the eastern regions of the country, where the central authorities in Kiev on Tuesday resumed military operations against insurgents and pro-Russian separatists after failed truce to be such.

Women, children and, to a lesser extent, men, come to Russia by crossing- Rostov on Don, Cossack tradition region abutting Lugansk and Donetsk, the Ukrainian provinces scene of armed conflict which some consider as “war” and others as ” counter-terrorist operation “.

The refugees arrive with almost no luggage. Often with nothing. When shootings put their nerves to the surface they left Slaviansk – where there is no electricity or water – of Kramatorsk or Aleksandrovka. They left unharvested orchards that had ensured its survival for the winter; they abandoned their pets and sometimes even children who were left to fight the Army National Guard and military units that President Petro Poroshenko send them to restore constitutional order in Ukraine.

Many Ukrainian citizens are sheltered in Rostov accommodation centers. Their stories are very similar to each other.

UNHCR, the UN agency for refugees, the displaced number people entering the Russia is about 110,000 since the beginning of the year until last Friday. In Rostov, in yesterday morning 20,796 Ukrainians  were sheltered. Of these, 3,580 reside in temporary accommodation and the rest with relatives, friends or volunteers.

At the border there have been several incidents and even shootings. On the Ukrainian side, troops loyal to Kiev and insurgents have fought at border posts. On Tuesday, Ukraine claimed to have re-established control over those posts. Statistics yesterday show that 2,339 Ukrainians arrived in Russia on Tuesday. In comparison, on Monday was 6,381, and on June 18, just over 14,000.

Since Kiev restricts border crossing, one wonders whether the civilian population of the hardest hit cities like Slaviansk, Krematorsk, gorlovka offer safe corridors for safety in Ukraine. Ukrainian Refugees in Rostov had not even considered that possibility.

Rostov efficiently welcomes the Ukrainians fleeing the conflicting zone. Nothing to do with the hardships suffered Chechens and Russians in their own country in the nineties of the last century and the first decade of this, when they fled Moscow Army commanded restore constitutional order broken by Chechen separatists.

In Novoshájtinsk, Ukrainians are housed in a camp consists of 20 large stores, deployed by the emergency services in the province. A games room for the kids and even an Orthodox chapel. The province has received 240 million rubles from Moscow to meet refugees.

Ukrainians can now stay up to a year in Russia, rather than 90 days. They may also request temporary asylum for a year, but becoming a political refugee is much more complicated. Most Ukrainians are seeking other legal ways to stay rather than claiming asylum.

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Posted by Maleeha Tareen on Jul 4 2014. Filed under Europe. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.