MOSCOW, July 23. /TASS/. There are no nations that are initially unfriendly to Russians but hostile governments certainly do exist, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a meeting with the leaders of the country’s non-profit organizations.
"This also goes for the countries that we call unfriendly," he noted. "In fact, I stand for describing the governments of some countries as unfriendly, but basically, nations are about the life and aspirations of people and I don’t see a single nation in the world that would be initially unfriendly to our people, our citizens. However, unfriendly governments certainly do exist; I would even use a tougher word, calling them hostile," Lavrov added.
"Today, the role of people-to-people and public diplomacy is growing, particularly in terms of maintaining a healthy, trusting and friendly atmosphere with foreign partners, clarifying the problems that have been created by the West," the top Russian diplomat emphasized.