Russia reports increased inflow of Ukrainian immigrants

The number of Ukrainian citizens who have permanently moved to Russia grew by 20 percent year on year, the Federal Migration Service (FMS) said Monday.

"Currently in Russia, there are 1.607 million Ukrainian citizens. This is 20 percent growth year-on-year," Konstantin Romodanovsky, head of the FMS, told reporters.

The number of Ukrainians who come to Russia with no apparent economic reasons grew two-fold over the same period, Xinhua cited the official as saying.

He added that a significant number of Ukrainians already legally in Russia are increasingly applying for extension of their residential permits under various pretexts.

The majority of the applicants physically live in Moscow, St. Petersburg and the regions bordering Ukraine, the official specified.

Meanwhile, Romodanovsky noted that since March 17, the FMS has issued over 5,500 Russian passports for the residents of Crimea and Sevastopol, which became part of Russia last week.

The total number of Russian passport applications received by FMS in the former Ukraine's territory amounted to 21,000 as of Monday, he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin Friday signed into law legislation on the accession of Crimea after both legislative chambers unanimously approved it.