A US Russian lawmaker said Thursday that a day after a violent mob loyal to President Trump stormed the US Capitol in a last-ditch attempt to overthrow the election.
Konstantin Kosachyov, chairman of Russia’s High House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the chaos in Washington DC shows that the US has no right to teach other countries about democracy, reports Agence France-Presse.
“The losing side has more than enough grounds to accuse the winner of forgeries – it’s clear that American democracy is limping on both feet,” Kosachyov wrote on Facebook.
“The celebration of democracy has ended. “Unfortunately, it has reached a low point, and I say it without a hint,” he added. ‘America no longer holds the course and has therefore lost the right to set it. And, even more, to impose it on others. ”
Russian state media showed images of rioters breaking down barricades and swarming the building, while security forces fired tear gas and law enforcers pulled in guns.
Moscow has long criticized US criticism of the state of Russian democracy under strongman Vladimir Putin, accusing Washington of hypocrisy and condescension.
With the Russians celebrating Orthodox Christmas on Thursday, there was no immediate response from the Kremlin or the Foreign Ministry, but pro-Kremlin lawmakers jumped on the bandwagon.
“The United States certainly cannot impose electoral standards on other countries right now and claim to be the world’s beacon of democracy, ‘” Leonid Slutsky, the lower house’s foreign affairs chief, told local news agencies.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the chaos unleashed on the Capitol exposed the fragility of Western democracy.
“What we saw yesterday (Wednesday) and today in the United States shows, above all, how fragile and vulnerable Western democracy is,” Rouhani said on Thursday in a speech broadcast by state TV, reports Agence France-Presse.
“We have seen that the land is unfortunately fertile for populism, despite advances in science and industry,” he added. A populist showed up and he has been leading his country to disaster for the past four years. I hope the whole world and the next inhabitants of the White House will learn from it. ”
Rouhani urged the incoming government “to make up (for the past) and restore the country to a position worthy of the American nation, because the American nation is a great nation.”
The semi-official Iranian Fars news agency called the US a “fragmented democracy”, while government Twitter accounts believed it, and circulated photos of the mob with hashtags including #DownfalloftheUS.
In China, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying complained to the US about the way they described protesters in Hong Kong compared to the scenes that took place in the Capitol, Fox News reported.
“Everyone can remember how some American politicians and media described the riots in Hong Kong, but look at their choice of words today,” she told reporters, quoting a translation from the state-owned Global Times.
“The American mainstream media unanimously condemned today’s event, calling it violent and shameful and describing the protesters as rioters, extremists and thugs,” she added. “But do you remember what they said about Hong Kong rioters?”
“As you said, they call it ‘a beautiful sight to behold’, to beautify the rioters of the city as ‘heroes of democracy’ and claim that Americans will stand with them,” she said.
The Communist Youth League posted a photo montage of the violence in the capital of the country on its Twitter-like Weibo microblog with the caption: “At the sixth, the US Congress, a most beautiful place to behold.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared to be mocking her comments in June 2019 in praise of sometimes violent anti-government protests in Hong Kong.
And Venezuela, which is under U.S. sanctions, said the events in Washington show that the U.S. is “suffering from what it has generated in other countries with its policy of aggression.”
President Nicolás Maduro survived the opposition efforts to oust him despite allegations of human rights violations, civil unrest and a humanitarian crisis that forced millions to flee the oil-rich country.
And the leading US military commander for Africa gave his troops a message of assurance, saying that America, its constitution and system of government remain strong despite the violent events at the US Capitol.
Army General Stephen Townsend tweeted on Thursday that America has faced much greater and greater challenges in the past and that Africa Command is still focused on its mission.
“The American people expect and need us to remain steadfast and keep our duties clear – and we will do so,” Townsend said in a statement with his senior designated leader, ao. Major Richard Thresher.
While the statement is apparently addressed to its Africa Command forces, it clearly serves as a message across Europe and Africa to America’s allies who watch in horror as armed and angry protesters take over the US Capitol on Wednesday. Africa Command is based in Germany.
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