MOSCOW, May 14 (RIA Novosti) – Sergei Naryshkin, the speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament, emphasized Wednesday the importance of dialogue between Russian and foreign lawmakers, and said more contacts were planned in the near future.
“Positive results of [our] parliamentary visits to Serbia and France indicate that a dialogue isn’t just possible but is actually necessary. We will make use of that. Japan is one of the next stops on our travel list,” the speaker said during a televised interview broadcast on Russia’s Rossiya-24.
Naryshkin noted that French and Serbian lawmakers were divided over Russia’s stance on the situation in Ukraine. He said there was a wide range of opinions voiced in the countries’ parliaments, adding that none of them sought to pressure the Russian delegation.
“There were all manner of views – some were objective in their take on the situation in Ukraine and the Russian Federation’s stand on the Ukraine crisis,” Naryshkin said, adding opinions of the local public were greatly influenced by the West’s massive media campaign.
Earlier this month, Bulgaria blocked Naryshkin from entering the country, citing EU sanctions against him. Moscow has accused Washington of forcing Bulgaria to cancel the Duma speaker’s visit.
