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Interior minister says Russia has world’s second biggest migrant community

The total number of foreigners and individuals without citizenship account for 7% of the Russian population, which surpasses 10 million people

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

MOSCOW, December 14 /TASS/. Russia has the world’s second largest migrant community, the country’s Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev stated at a government Q&A session (government hour) held at Russia’s Federation Council on Wednesday.

"This country has the world’s second largest migrant community on its territory. The total number of foreigners and individuals without citizenship account for 7% of the Russian population, which surpasses 10 million people," the interior minister told the Federation Council (parliament’s upper house).

According to him, the influx of foreigners from other countries creates serious risks for the host country because it increases social tension and may spark ethnic and religious conflicts.

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Russia grants more than 280,000 Ukrainian nationals refugee status and temporary asylum

Kolokoltsev also said that the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine had increased the number of refugees in Russia.

"The events in Syria, Ukraine and a number of other states have seriously influenced the migration processes and have led to a noticeable rise in the number of refugees to this country," Kolokoltsev told the Federation Council.

According to him, about 1.1 million people urgently left Ukraine for Russia on a mass scale in 2014-2015.

"Almost 11,000 people are staying in 262 temporary accommodation centers. The authorities are monitoring the situation regularly. Additional measures are being taken to protect law and order, and ensure public security," the Russian interior minister stressed.

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Russian Interior Ministry Refugees Migration

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