SAMARA, June 20. /TASS/. Washington has long been pursuing double standards and its withdrawal from the United Nations Human Rights Council once again confirms this, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Wednesday.
"Our US counterparts have shown boorish cynicism - they are reluctant to admit that they have human rights issues themselves but at the same time, they continue attempts to reshape the council to make it serve their needs, stressing that there was no place for persistent violators of human rights in the council," Zakharova pointed out.
"Attempts to forcibly impose this rather specific understanding of human rights on other countries are, in themselves, a blatant violation of universal human values and civilized rules of conduct at the international stage," the Russian diplomat added.
The United States’ decision to withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council was erroneous, and no one gloats over the matter, she said.
"No one gloats over the United States’ withdrawal from the UN Human Rights Council. We believe that was a mistake, [just like] the US approach to use its powerful resources solely to promote its own interests, although they can be used in the best interests," she said.
The diplomat noted that Washington’s decision had dealt a powerful blow to its reputation in terms of protecting human rights.
"The US has once again dealt a powerful blow to its own human rights protection reputation showing disregard for both the Human Rights Council and the UN and the bodies it includes in general," she said.