Competence of White House officials a bad advertisement for quality of US education – Moscow
The US should attend to its own problems, rather than handing out unsolicited advice to other nations, Moscow has warned, following recent comments by a top American diplomat.
Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, lashed out on her Telegram channel on Wednesday, chiding American leaders for talking down to other nations while failing to deal with their own domestic problems.
She was responding to comments by US Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, who was asked at a press briefing on Tuesday about Moscow’s military financing. “Were I a Russian citizen,” she replied, “I would want to see the wealth applied to the healthcare system, to the education system, to the roads, the same kinds of conversations that we’re having here in the United States, rather than hemorrhaging money on a created crisis and putting their own military out there in the snow.”
Zakharova hit out at Nuland personally, writing, “Victoria, remain a US citizen and think about the same thing, but in relation to your own country – there are heaps of problems.”
She went on to criticize the American school system, healthcare, and infrastructure, saying, “the quality of American education is well-attested by the absurd, mistake-riddled statements coming from White House officials.” Zakharova also claimed that the American response to the Covid-19 pandemic proved that its healthcare system was broken.
“And if you’re so worried about roads,” she went on, “then it’s best to start with New York. The sorts of potholes found in Manhattan aren’t in a single major city in the world.”
The spokeswoman concluded her post by blaming Washington for maintaining military bases across Europe, surrounding Russia “like in the Cold War, or the Hot Summer,” and accused the US of preferring to foment “color revolutions” abroad rather than paying for domestic programs.
“Don’t know where to start?” she ended, before naming two US regions that have been known for high crime rates: “The Philadelphia Badlands or Camden – your choice. Good luck.”