Russian upper house speaker hopes visit from US congressmen to change their opinion about Russia

TASS
Sat, 30 Jun 2018 15:27 UTC

© AP/Alexander Zemlianichenko

Richard Shelby, R-Ala. and Sergey Lavrov

Speaker of the upper house of Russia's parliament Valentina Matviyenko said on Saturday she hoped that the visit by the delegation of US Congressmen would change their opinion about Russia shaped by the 'Russophobic policy' towards Moscow.

Russia's top senator expressed her opinion in an interview with Vesti v Subbotu (Saturday News) program on Rossiya 1 TV Channel that was aired in the Russian Far East.

Republican Senator John Kennedy from Louisiana said in an interview with CNN on June 23 on the eve of the visit to Russia that he wanted to see the state of the Russian economy with his own eyes.

According to the senator, some say that the Russian economy is 'in shambles" while others say that "with the increase in the price of oil, it's doing much better." Others say that "they're spending all their money on Syria and weaponry and the people are starving to death." Others say "that's not true."

As the speaker of the upper house of Russia's parliament said, "This is the result of the Russophobic policy conducted towards Russia. Senators should be informed and educated persons and it is a big regret that they use such widespread and primitive cliches with regard to our country. I hope that their trip to Russia will surely change their opinion," Matviyenko said, commenting on the senator's remarks.

Russia's top senator also said she hoped that the visit by the US delegation will open the way for parliamentary contacts between Russia and the United States.

As was reported earlier, a delegation of both Houses of the US Congress would visit Russia on June 30 - July 5. The US Congressmen are expected to make trips to St. Petersburg and Moscow and hold meetings with Russian officials.

Comment: The Republican delegation is currently in Moscow on what they say is a mission to try to help revive relations between Washington and Moscow. They met with Foreign Minister Lavrov today.

Lavrov said he hopes the visit will "symbolize the renewal of relations between the parliaments" of the United States and Russia, something he said was "very timely" ahead of the summit in Helsinki -- the first full-fledged meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. lawmakers were also meeting with State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, a close ally of Putin, and Konstantin Kosachev, the chairman of the Federation Council's International Affairs Committee. ...

Before arriving in Moscow late on July 2, the conservative legislators met in St. Petersburg with the city's governor, Georgy Poltavchenko, and expressed hopes for improving relations. Poltavchenko told them he is "optimistic" about the future and "ready for cooperation on all fronts."

The legislators were invited to Russia by U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman and are considered to be sympathetic or allied with U.S. President Donald Trump ...

"We think it's good for us to talk," Senator Richard Shelby (Republican-Alabama) told CNN before the trip.

Senator John Kennedy (Republican-Louisiana) told CNN he hopes the group will be able to meet with Putin. "I want to be able to meet with government officials, try to establish some rapport, talk about common interest, talk about common problems," he said, emphasizing that his goal is to "establish rapport between the United States Congress and the Putin administration."
...
The congressional delegation arrived in Russia on June 30 and plans to stay until July 5. Also included in the group are Senators John Hoeven (Republican-North Dakota), John Thune (Republican-South Dakota), Jerry Moran (Republican-Kansas), Steve Daines (Republican-Montana), and one House of Representatives member: Kay Granger (Republican-Texas).