MOSCOW, April 11 (RIA Novosti) – Anti-Russian incitement and growing racism and xenophobia in many countries in the European Union is dangerous for European stability, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday.
“Today’s anti-Russian incitement in many countries of the European Union on the backdrop of racism and xenophobia, the increase in the number of ultra-radical groups and the connivance of neo-Nazi manifestations in Ukraine or anywhere else is obviously dangerous for European stability,” Lavrov said during a press conference in Moscow.
On Thursday, Lavrov told the Interfax news agency that Eastern European NATO members are currently fueling anti-Russian sentiments within the alliance.
“This looks like some sort of hysteria artificially created by a number of East European countries that, after entering NATO, remain troubled by imaginary threats coming from Russia,” Lavrov said.
The surge in anti-Russian sentiment came as a response to Russia’s actions in Crimea. In March, citizens of the formerly Ukrainian peninsula voted in a referendum to secede and join Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a reunification treaty soon after, officially declaring Crimea part of Russia.
The US and other Western countries accused Russia of violating Ukraine’s territorial integrity, retaliating with sanctions against senior Russian officials. Putin repeatedly said the vote fully complied with international law and the UN Charter.
Lavrov stressed during Friday’s press conference that current events in Ukraine are not the cause, but the consequence of Western politics.
“If we start evaluating the situation as it really is, it will become apparent that the Ukrainian crisis is a first sign suggesting we are witnessing the rise of a polycentric world. This is a complex process. Outdated political traditions will not work here,” the Russian foreign minister said.
