March 14 (SeeNews) - As many as 69,735 refugees from Ukraine have entered Bulgaria since February 24 when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, Bulgarian deputy prime minister Kalina Konstantinova said.
Almost half of those refugees, 33,516 have remained in Bulgaria, Konstantinova said on Saturday, as seen in a video file published on the website of bTV channel.
"One-third of the refugees from Ukraine who have stayed in Bulgaria are children," she added.
The deputy PM said that the Bulgarian government will provide financing of 40 levs ($22.4/20.4 euro) per day to hotel owners who accommodate Ukrainian refugees. The funds will come from the state budget but the EU may also provide financing in the following months, she pointed out.
At the end of last month, the Bulgarian government decided to send humanitarian and military logistical aid to Ukraine, thus joining 25 donor states from the EU and NATO.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)