SOCHI, Southern Russia. Oct 2 (Interfax-AVN) - About one fifth of Russia's state border is not properly equipped, Viktor Ozerov, chairman of the Federation Council Defense and Security Committee, said on Thursday.
"The length of poorly equipped sections of the Russian state border amounts to 13,500km, which is about 20 percent of Russia's total border length," Ozerov said at a conference in the Krasnodar territory devoted to the legal support of border security and migration in Russia.
"In some border areas the border guards live as in the 1920s and 1930s. For example, the Dagestan-based Akhtyn Border Guard Detachment is still accommodated in clay-walled huts," he said.
The senator said that the wave of migration in Russia was a major problem hindering not only social stability but also state security.
According to Ozerov, 600,000 persons have entered the Krasnodar territory in the past six years; the migration surplus was 177,700 persons, raising the total population of the territory to 5.12 million. The population density in the territory is six times as high as on average in the country.
"Which is remarkable, most migrants try to settle down in strategic areas - near the border and on the seaside," he said.