Around 4,000 Refugees Flee from Ukraine to Russia – Medvedev

Refugees from Eastern UkraineRussia has already received around 4,000 Ukrainian refugees as Kiev turned a blind eye to the looming humanitarian crisis in the violence-hit east, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday, ria.ru reports.

“People are frightened, scared. At the same time, the Ukrainian government fails to notice a humanitarian problem, says there are no refugees. It’s lies and it’s sad to hear it,” he said.

This is an extraordinary emergency situation, the prime minister stressed.

At the same time, “the so-called Group of Seven is speculating about Ukraine’s army measured actions against its people,” Medvedev added, calling the G7 claims cynical.

The leaders of the G7 nations had talks on Wednesday and released a communique encouraging the Ukrainian authorities to maintain "a measured approach in pursuing operations to restore law and order" in the southern parts of the country.

In mid-April, Kiev authorities started a special military operation in the east of Ukraine to suppress pro-independence protests, with most clashes breaking out in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Petro Poroshenko, who won snap May 25 presidential election, urged the law enforcement agencies to complete «sweeping» Donetsk and Luhansk regions before his inauguration on June 7.

Moscow has repeatedly urged Kiev to stop this punitive operation, which has already led to dozens of casualties.