BEIJING, October 11. /TASS/. The U.S. and Canadian governments should ensure objective coverage of the events in Ukraine, leaders of the organisations of Russian compatriots in the U.S. and Canada told TASS on Friday.
They were speaking at the 22nd session of the World Coordination Council of Russian Compatriots currently underway in Beijing.
“We read with pain incomplete information on the situation in Ukraine in American media. Many people in the U.S. don’t know the history of Ukraine, including of Crimea. The most interesting thing is that a good many of Americans support our community on this issue,” chairperson of the Coordination Council of Russian Compatriots in the U.S. Natalya Sabelnik said.
“For me the topic of Crimea is especially close. My father served in the White Army. We, Orthodox believers, have always thought and will think that Ukraine is Holy Russia that is why the non-objective coverage of the events in Ukraine is a very painful issue for the Russian community in the U.S.,” she said.
Chairperson of the Coordination Council of Russian Compatriots in Canada Yelena Klinayeva shared this view. “After the Ukrainian crisis began we sent a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. We said the Canadian government has insufficient knowledge about the situation in Ukraine: in fact Canadians face an information blockade,” she said.
The members of the organisation also asked the premier for a meeting. “We’re pleased with a positive answer from the government: our issue will be discussed,” Klinayeva said.
The World Coordination Council of Russian Compatriots is a representative body of the World Congress of Compatriots. The Council carries on a regular dialogue with the government commission for the affairs of compatriots abroad, federal and regional bodies of power of Russia, representatives of traditional confessions, non-governmental organisations in Russia and abroad. The Council promotes consolidation of the Russian-speaking community abroad and protects its interests.