MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/. There is a shift in European rhetoric toward Russians and there are a lot of sensible citizens among Europeans who understand the true root causes of the special military operation, Russian human rights ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova told TASS.

"The rhetoric is changing. A lot of sensible citizens understand the true root causes of the special military operation and are changing their attitude to Russia and to the actions, that are in fact being taken against genocide, against neo-fascism, against the violation of human rights in Donbass, where the Russian language was in fact banned and pro-Russian citizens were deprived of social rights and guarantees, including pension restrictions," she said, when asked whether the degree of Russophobia in Europe is falling.

She said that, in particular, during the latest meeting of the European Ombudsman Institute, which includes regional ombudsmen and human rights commissioners from Germany, Austria, Serbia and Greece, it was clear that people in these countries understand what is happening correctly and objectively, despite the fact that at the state level there is "an unprecedented violation of the right to freedom of speech and the effective blocking of objective information that should be reaching these territories."