Russia helps Lebanon’s Syrian refugees

Russian President Vladmir Putin has offered to assist Arab countries in resolving the ongoing Syrian crisis, during a diplomatic visit to the Russian capital, Moscow, by Lebanese President Michel Sleiman on Wednesday. Speaking on Wednesday, Putin offered to host a conference to discuss ways of helping Lebanon and other countries cope with the flood of refugees from Syria. The Russian President offered temporary housing, tens, medical supplies and humanitarian aid to Syrian refugees currently living inside Lebanon. "We will do our utmost to sponsor the organisation of an international conference on the refugee problem," Putin said. "We are ready to host this conference in Moscow." Sleiman announced more than 200,000 refugees had fled to Lebanon since the 22-month uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began, straining Beirut's domestic budget and threatening stability in the country. "There are more than 200,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon alone, and we do not know how many more Syrian refugees will come to our territory," Sleiman said. "Lebanon has no financial means to house such a number of refugees." The Lebanese government has officially sought to "dissociate" itself from the Syrian conflict, resisting calls from international humanitarian agencies to establish formal refugee camps like those currently in Jordan and Turkey.