U.S. less efficient than Western Europe in terms of visa issuance in Russia - Ryabkov
XIAMEN (China). Sept 4 (Interfax) - The number of visas issued by U.S. diplomats in Russia does not correspond to the number of U.S. consulates, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters on Monday.
"I'd like to draw your attention to the fact that five consular workers of the Italian Embassy in Moscow issued over 900,000 visas last year, and the 20+ Spanish personnel issued 650,000 visas. The United States, which has way more personnel - we are actually unaware of the composition of the U.S. Embassy and Consulates - issued far fewer visas, 200,000," Ryabkov said.
However, after Russia decided to equalize the number of diplomatic personnel in the two countries, the U.S. said that it would stop issuing visas outside Moscow and the visa application processing period would increase, he said.
"Why do our commentators fall for such leaks and believe that Russian actions are a factor? I think that the Americans are too accustomed to doing anything they want in a variety of spheres, without receiving any response whatsoever," Ryabkov said.