MOSCOW, January 20. /TASS/. Relations between Russia and Italy are at an all-time low, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a news conference to sum up the results of Russian diplomacy in 2025.

"As for relations with Italy and their being at an all-time low, I stand by what I said," he noted, adding: "Italy is one of the very few countries that currently shuns Russian art."

According to Lavrov, fighting against art is not typical of the Italian people. The top diplomat pointed out that similar examples have emerged from "the Nazi regime in Ukraine." "They have recently announced that [19th century military leader Mikhail] Kutuzov, [writer] Ivan Bunin, and [writer and diplomat] Alexander Griboyedov must be banned as symbols of Russian imperialism," Lavrov said.