OSCE Debacle Shows West's Double Standards to Russia – Italian Politician

Claudio D'Amico from Italy’s eurosceptic Lega Nord Party said that double standards in regard to Russia are applied constantly and in great numbers.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Double standards in regard to Russia are a common practice in the foreign policy of western countries, Claudio D'Amico from Italy’s eurosceptic Lega Nord Party said Friday.

“I want to say that double standards in regard to Russia are applied constantly and in great numbers. On the last parliamentary session of the OSCE in Helsinki, the situation was very serious: I speak first and foremost about the denial to enter the country and to issue visas to some Russian lawmakers including Speaker of the State Duma Sergei Naryshkin,” D’Amico said at a press conference at the Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency.

He added that Naryshkin attended the session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in January 2015 and France permitted his participation, in contrast to Finland.

On July 1, Finland denied issuing entry visas to a group of Russian lawmakers on an EU sanction blacklist, including Naryshkin. The parliamentarians intended to take part in the summer session of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly. In protest, the Russian delegation withdrew from the parliamentary session.