“An example of breach of international obligations”: the FBI detained and interrogated a Russian deputy at a New York airport

An employee of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation interrogated Ingu Yumashev, a journalist and State Duma deputy, during an hour when she was at the New York airport on her way to the Fort Ross Dialogue forum. The incident occurred two days ago, but it became known only today - the Russian ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, told reporters about the interrogation.

“She was detained at the New York airport, she was asked to go into a separate room and the FBI officer who introduced himself began to interrogate her for an hour. Absolutely incomprehensible, obscure and unacceptable issues, ”said the diplomat.

“Moreover, she was invited to meet with the FBI officer in a different, informal setting and continue this conversation,” Antonov added.

The ambassador emphasized that Yumasheva is not just a Russian citizen, but a politician who has done a lot in recent years to develop and stabilize Russian-American relations.

“I can’t imagine if our relevant services had detained someone, say, someone from the Senate or the lower house of Congress. For example, those senators who shouted that they did not receive a visa, or those who received visas came to the Russian Federation. They would take them to a separate room, would begin to interrogate, and then the relevant representative would offer to drink coffee somewhere in one of the nearest restaurants of Sheremetyevo, ”the ambassador noted.

“We consider such actions unacceptable, outrageous. Today we sent a corresponding note of protest to the State Department and we hope that they will explain to us what kind of sounding approaches to a deputy of the State Duma mean, ”Antonov summed up.

In turn, Yumasheva herself refused to comment on what happened. According to the parliamentarian, Russian diplomats are engaged in this situation.

“I informed the Ambassador of Russia Anatoly Antonov about the situation,” a RIA Novosti politician said, refusing to provide any details of the incident.

Commenting on the situation, Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the lower house of parliament, called the actions of the American side another example of violation of international obligations. The State Duma speaker drew attention to the fact that the deputy received an invitation to participate in the international forum and the American embassy issued her a visa.

“Inga Yumasheva coordinates in the State Duma the work of the liaison group with the US Congress, interacts with her colleagues, and participates in a difficult dialogue. And the behavior of the US special services in this regard can only be assessed as a cynical provocation, ”Volodin said.

In his opinion, there are forces in the United States interested in aggravating relations with Russia: "Actions that create a negative atmosphere in the relations between our countries are unacceptable and deserve condemnation."

In turn, the head of the Federation Council’s committee on international affairs, Konstantin Kosachev, called the ugly situation with the detention and interrogation of Yumasheva, who “did a lot to maintain at least minimal dialogue with the American parliamentarians” and arrived in the United States with a “purely humanitarian mission”.

“American intelligence agencies are doing what they want. Regardless of the mission, nor diplomatic status, nor elementary decency in interstate relations, ”he wrote on Facebook.

The head of the State Duma’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Leonid Slutsky, called the incident "an unheard-of arrogance of provocation," carried out as part of the diplomatic war unleashed by the United States in 2016.

The expert of the International Institute for Humanitarian and Political Studies Vladimir Bruter called the expected behavior of the American side. According to him, one should not rely on reasonable behavior on the part of the United States and the fact that Washington will follow the accepted rules.

“We can say that Washington has not written any rules and that it will do whatever it sees fit. Russia needs to be prepared for this and apply retaliatory measures, ”the source said.

American visas for Russian diplomats

The Fort Ross Dialog is a Russian-American forum that was first held in 2012 and has been held annually since then. The event is dedicated to issues of cooperation between the two countries in different fields. The forum is attended by cultural figures, politicians and businessmen of the two countries. The conference owes its name to the Russian settlement in California, the Ross fortress founded in 1812.

On the eve of the new round of the Fort Ross Dialogue, which will be held on October 6, the Russian ambassador Anatoly Antonov stated that the event was taking place in difficult conditions related to the current state of Russian-American relations. However, he expressed confidence that many ordinary US citizens are in favor of establishing a dialogue with Russia.

It is worth recalling that the other day the Russian Foreign Ministry reported that a number of diplomats were unable to obtain visas to participate in the Fort Ross Dialogue. This was during a traditional briefing, said the official representative of the department, Maria Zakharova.

According to her, the forum aims to "strengthen mutual understanding through public diplomacy and stimulate bilateral cooperation."

“Apparently, someone in Washington’s political circles didn’t like these goals,” Zakharova said, stressing that ending the “vicious practice” of visa issuance depended on the American side.

At the end of September, a number of Russian diplomats were also refused visas to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly in New York. Then the American side explained this decision with "technical difficulties."

The Kremlin emphasized that the current situation requires a tough reaction both from Moscow and from the UN. This was stated by spokesman for the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov.

“In fact, Washington is violating its own international obligations. Washington has no right to refuse to issue visas to an official delegation, a Russian delegation that goes to the UN General Assembly, because in this case it is not a matter of bilateral relations, it is a matter of US obligations, ”he said.

First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Foreign Affairs Dmitry Novikov, in an interview with RT, drew parallels between the interrogation of Yumasheva and this visa situation.

“With a great desire, it could be imagined as someone’s headache, but everything begins to take on the character of relapse,” the parliamentarian said.

According to him, in Moscow it was hoped that the United States would provide all the necessary conditions for the work of the UN and would not represent itself as a country that defines the rules, but in fact it didn’t happen otherwise.

“I’m afraid that when our colleagues find themselves in this unpleasant situation, we get not a single episode, but a system,” the deputy concluded.