Delegation of the Russian Federation 9th Session of the Forum on Minority Issues “National Minorities in Situations of Humanitarian Crisis” (Geneva 24-25 November 2016) Working Session 2: Respect for the rights of minorities as a tool for prevention or reduction of humanitarian crisis consequences Dear Mr Chairman, dear colleagues, It is with great interest we familiarised ourselves with the report and recommendation project, prepared by the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues. Addressing this theme reflects the objective reality – recently a great number of tragic events took place on the international arena, which revealed the immeasurable problems of humanity. This spring Pope Francis and other religious leaders met on the island of Lesbos and called the influx of countless refugees from the Middle East and Northern Africa into the European continent as a giant humanitarian crisis. Unfortunately, we have to state, that these events mostly became the results of irresponsible and unstudied intervention into internal matters of states, with the aim to forcefully replace un-cooperative governments in the region. It is absolutely correct in the report made by the Special Rapporteur, more specifically, in paras. 60-62, that point out, with what human rights problems refugees and asylum seekers are faced. Those include xenophobia, limitation on the freedom of movement and protective barriers, maintenance in camps with inhumane conditions and many more. The priority of the attention should be given in the context of the discussed theme to the acute humanitarian situation in the South-East of Ukraine, where representatives of different people live. The September report of the monitoring mission of the OHCHR states, that Ukrainian troops continue the shelling of peaceful inhabited localities, bringing death to civilians. The social infrastructure is destroyed, people do not have enough food, water and medicine. This is also confirmed by NGOs, including Amnesty International. The call of religious leaders not to ignore humanitarian crisis in Europe, obviously, can be applied also in Ukraine. In these situations double standards should not exist when evaluating the events taking place. Let us remind you, that from April 2014 more than a million of Ukrainian citizens are under Russia’s protection. Ukrainian refugees receive medical and psychological assistance, they are given employment positions, social benefits, and places for children in orphanages and educational institutions. We would like to address the attention of the Special Rapporteur on the situation, when the obvious laissez-faire of the government in Kiev nationalists of different kinds and radicals are