Russia: "If we talk about domestic anti-Semitism and attitudes in society in general, there is no decline there"

Via RBTH:

However, the conference's participants agreed that anti-Semitism still exists in Russia. "Open forms of anti-Semitism have weakened, but anti-Semitism has not disappeared," Gudkov said. "The entire structure of anti-Semitist sentiments has persisted. Anti-Semitism has simply entered a ‘dormant phase.'"
Monika-Yevgeniya Kuznetsova, 26, an ethnic Russian Jew, told RBTH that she often has to deal with anti-Semitism, which, for example, is expressed in people's reactions to Hebrew textbooks.

"Once I was in the metro, studying Hebrew," Monika-Yevgeniya recalled. "A guy spoke to me, seeking to get acquainted. After learning that I study Hebrew, he changed his expression and said angrily: 'Our grandfathers died because of those nasty Jews, how can you learn their language?'"

"If we talk about domestic anti-Semitism and attitudes in society in general, there is no decline there, the situation has not changed," Alexander Kargin, director of the office of the Likud World Organisation (Likud Olami) in Russia, told RBTH. "It's just a matter of degrees. Against the background of Europe, where anti-Semitic moods are growing, the situation in Russia is undoubtedly better."

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