MOSCOW, November 20. /TASS/. Diplomats working in various countries’ missions in Geneva and following Russophobic instructions from their capitals apologize for their stance on the sidelines of various events, Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Alexey Borodavkin, told Izvestia.

According to Russia’s envoy, Russophobia turned out to be an infectious disease, with many Western governments and diplomatic services contracting it. "There are more intelligent people among foreign diplomats who are forced to comply with Russophobic instructions from their capital cities. However, they do that without particular zeal, and on the sidelines [of various events] they seem to be at a loss and apologize," he said.

"There are others though for whom Russophobia is an essential professional approach, and they are not reluctant to indulge in falsifications and deliberate lies," Borodavkin noted. "It is useless to dissuade them. However, no matter how hard Russophobes try, our country’s strategic weight in the world is such that they willy-nilly have to talk and interact with us."

The diplomat also noted that a sudden strong immunity against anti-Russian sentiment in Asia, Africa and Latin America was a surprise for many. "We have many friends at the UN, and we feel pretty confortable here," he explained. "This is confirmed, for example, by the fact that Russia’s representatives are often elected to the governing bodies of important international forums in Geneva. In the outgoing year alone, Russia successfully chaired the World Health Assembly and the Conference on Disarmanent.