Russia's withdrawal from the Council of Europe may harm both sides, State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said. "We do not want to implement this plan. We believe that this solution would prejudice the Russian Federation and even such important organizations as the Council of Europe," he said.
The Duma Speaker regards the actions of the government of Finland as "a manifestation of weak character" and said that they would not employ similar responses. "We're beyond that. We are noble, strong and proud," he explained.
Naryshkin expressed hope that this event "will be another occasion for some shoots of common sense to return." "And we still look forward to common sense ... returning to the actions of politicians in the European Union, for some features we feel that it is still coming back slowly," he said.
In addition, the State Duma speaker expressed doubt that the young or newly formed party will win parliamentary seats after the elections in the seventh convocation of the State Duma.
According to Naryshkin, "four parliamentary parties is quite a robust structure, the right structure."
