Russia will never 'cower' to the US in the visa war
(Baonghean.vn) - In response to US sanctions against two employees of the Russian Investigative Committee, Moscow will expand restrictions on US citizens.
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| Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. Photo: TASS |
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that visa restrictions on Russian citizens were a continuation of "completely failed policies".
"It seems that the US side thinks that we will shrink back from sanctions, but no, that will never happen," Deputy Minister Ryabkov emphasized.
Russian officials are particularly concerned about speculation about not granting Russian visas to US senators, which has appeared in the US media since late August 2019.
"The relevant authorities have tried to analyze the reasons for the visa refusals. No one has refused to grant them visas, but these are cases on the list of restricted entry into Russia," said Mr. Sergei Ryabkov.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Moscow would reciprocate only if Washington abandoned its plan to expand the visa restrictions for Russian diplomats based on the principle of "reciprocity." "In any case, the ball of responsibility for American workers is half on the US side," Ryabkov said.
Recently, US-Russia relations have heated up again when both sides blamed each other for not granting visas to a series of diplomats from both countries.
Previously, the New York Times quoted a diplomatic staff member of the US Embassy in Moscow, saying that Russia refused to grant visas to 30 teachers at the English school of the US Embassy in Moscow.
In response to this information, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement and called the statements of US officials "lies".
At the same time, Russia also criticized the US for starting a "visa war" because for many years, the US has made it difficult for Russia to rotate its diplomatic staff, delaying the issuance of visas to more than 60 diplomatic staff of Russian representative agencies abroad.