Information campaign on program of Meskhetian Turks' resettlement from Kuban region to US begins

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) launches an information campaign on the program of Meskhetian Turks' resettlement from the Kuban region to the United States. As the REGNUM correspondent was told at the Fund "School of Peace", the first meeting of IOM workers with Meskhetian Turks will be held on February 16 in the village of Kholmskaya, Krasnodar Territory's Abinsky district. The IOM representatives will inform the Meskhetian Turks about the program of resettlement to the United States.

The same source reported that after notifying the appropriate Russian structures (the Foreign and Interior Ministries, Federal Security Service, and others), the US Embassy to Russia was expected to make an official statement in February or March 2004 announcing the opening of the resettlement program. Up to 10,000 Meskhetian Turks will be able to be participants in it.

To remind, this will be already the second program of the United States in Russia to massively grant refugee status to discriminated peoples living in the post-Soviet area. The first one was for 1,500 Armenians who escaped from the slaughter in Baku and temporarily stayed in Moscow.

Editors note: See also the article "Human rights activists: authorities in Kuban region do not want to observe law with respect to Meskhetian Turks".