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Blasts in Brussels

Moscow slams Western reports on Russia’s reaction to Brussels terror attacks

A number of US media outlets have analyzed the Russian condolences presented over the Belgium terror attacks

Russian Foreign Ministry building in Moscow Gennady Khamelyanin/TASS Archive

Russian Foreign Ministry building in Moscow

© Gennady Khamelyanin/TASS Archive

MOSCOW, March 24 /TASS/. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has described as "mean" the accusations of some western media outlets that Russia reacted to the Brussels terror attacks with a malicious glee.

The degree of rottenness in these reports is running high. Russia has always said there can be no excuses for terrorist activities, Zakharova told a briefing on Thursday.

"A number of U.S. media outlets, including those sponsored on taxpayers’ money, has analyzed the Russian condolences presented over the Belgium terror attacks. The meanness of these publications is running way over the limit," she said.

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Radio Liberty and other U.S. media circulated reports that Russian officials had allegedly mocked at the Brussels terror attacks.

"Let me remind you that in the first minutes upon receiving trustworthy information about the terror attacks, the Russian side and Russian officials, including the president of Russia, the prime minister and all the other ministers, as well as representatives of the legislative and executive branches of power, presented their profound condolences and words of support to the terror attacks’ victims," Zakharova said.

"Russia has always said that terrorist activities cannot be justified. Russia has always defended this stance consistently like no one else," the Russian diplomat stressed.

She added the United States had refused to condemn a serious of recent terror attacks on Russian embassies. "Our U.S. colleagues blocked the adoption of a U.N. document to condemn the terror attacks," Zakharova said.

She accused Radio Liberty of distorting her own remarks. "The Radio Liberty materials can be considered to be fake…My remarks cited by the radio station had not been taken from my quotes but had been cooked up on the basis of what some outsiders wrote in Twitter," Zakharova said.

Russia was rebuked for talking about NATO, the diplomat went on to say. "But the relatives of victims of the Brussels terror attacks should know that an organization called NATO, which is sponsored on their money, is unilaterally blocking a dialogue with Russia on counter-terrorism," Zakharova said.

"I think you should know that we have been urging NATO to start a full-format dialogue on counter-terrorism all the time," she added.

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