Statement by Igor Chaika, the Head of Rossotrudnichestvo Agency

Sibiga’s call to shut down Russian Houses around the world inevitably brings to mind a character from Russian literature who became an example of destructive idiocy — Polygraph Polygraphovich Sharikov from Mikhail Bulgakov’s Heart of the Dog.
It is hardly surprising that Ukraine's Foreign Minister is calling for the closure of Russian Houses in Europe. Intolerance toward Russians has been characteristic of the Kiev Nazi regime since 2014.
I am confident that the educated majority around the world will clearly disapprove this. Especially since we have seen tens of thousands of Germans oppose the closure of the Russian House in Berlin and our Agency has received numerous letters of support.