Russian Foreign Ministry urged to verify the reliability of statements by Western politicians

Statements by Western politicians should be checked for accuracy with redoubled attention. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said this on January 29.

According to her, a fake absurd statement may turn out to be an "accurate quote".

"Even five to seven years ago, when I read statements by Western statesmen, I made sure to check whether it was a fake. Now you have to check everything with double attention, because there is a great chance that an obviously fake absurd statement may turn out to be an exact quote," she wrote in her Telegram channel.

Earlier, on January 10, Zakharova said that former Finnish President Sauli Niinistö had cited a fake quote by Vladimir Lenin in his official report for the European Union (EU). We are talking about Niinistö's 165-page report for the EU, "Safer Together: Strengthening Europe's Civil and Military Preparedness," where he used a phrase that allegedly belongs to Lenin: "Probe the ground with bayonets: if it stabs dirt - continue, if you come across steel - stop."