The Russian Embassy in Iceland is asking an Icelandic newspaper to apologize for publishing an article with his participation and a photo in which a man seems to be using the Russian flag as a rug on which to wipe his feet.

The Russian Embassy in Iceland condemned the publication in the central newspaper of a photo of a person cleaning shoes on the state flag of the Russian Federation with the caption “Ukrainians have found a new way to use the Russian flag.” “.

• “We believe that the very fact of publishing such a photo in the central press of Iceland is a manifestation of frank disrespect for the Russian Federation and its state symbols.
• We would like to remind the management of the Frettabladid newspaper that the Icelandic government has still not repealed Article 95 of the Criminal Code of Iceland, which provides for prison terms for publicly insulting the symbols of a foreign state,” said a statement posted on the diplomatic website. Telegram channels of the mission on Wednesday, TASS reports.

In addition, the embassy said that it expects a public apology from the editors of the Frettabladid newspaper for the publication of material that offends the state symbol of Russia.

The message also appeared on the Facebook page of the Russian embassy in Iceland, which urges journalists to “do their homework” in terms of ethics.

• “The question is why media representatives of Iceland, a country that positions itself as a consistent supporter of European democratic virtues, consider it appropriate to publish such materials that violate current legislation and generally accepted moral values, as well as journalistic ethics.
• And please don’t waste your time hiding this fact behind the veil of free speech. It has nothing to do with media rights and freedom of speech. For those who do not see the obvious difference, we can only recommend that they devote some time to doing their homework more thoroughly,” the diplomatic mission also said.

An article published in the Icelandic newspaper Frettabladid, condemned by Russian diplomacy, praised the ability of Ukrainians to adapt and fight against the Russian invaders, referring to the so-called third phase of the war, in which Ukrainian forces try to retake lost territories.

At the end of the article, Valur Gunnarsson, an Icelandic journalist based in Kyiv, also talked about Ukrainians’ respect for countries that helped Ukraine after Russia started the war, also illustrated a photo of a man who appears to be using the Russian flag as a rug with the explanation “Ukrainians found a new way to use the Russian flag.”

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