Russian refugee wave not expected in the country
Skopje, 27 September 2022 (MIA) – In response to a reporter’s question on Tuesday, Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski said a wave of Russian refugees is not expected, given that the country has no direct connection with Moscow as other countries have.
Asked whether Russian refugees will have the same treatment as Ukrainian refugees in case they do arrive to the country, Kovachevski said treatment of Ukrainian refugees is in accordance with international organizations which the country has joined to take in refugees fleeing the war.
“We have made all the necessary decisions regarding permanent shelter or transit shelter because some of them arrive and then travel to other countries. That is their treatment, but your question is about something else entirely. They travel to countries where they have direct flights. There are no direct flights here,” Kovachevski said after Tuesday’s event on presenting a project for connecting local roads.
Asked if visa suspension for Russian citizens is being mulled, the PM said there was no such proposal at the moment.
Over the past few days, thousands of Russian citizens are fleeing the country after Russia’s President Vladimir Putin ordered last week a partial call-up of 300,000 reservists. Russians usually queue in their vehicles at the borders with Georgia and Mongolia, where waiting time hits up to 48 hours, because the price of plane tickets, a handful of which are available, has soared, reaching several thousands of euros. Visa-free countries for Russian citizens include Serbia, Turkey, Georgia and Armenia.
