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Upset About Crimea? Then Chill Out and Do Some Yoga Says a Russian Official

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov looks on at the start of closed-door nuclear talks at the United Nations offices in Geneva
Reuters Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov looks on at the start of two days of closed-door nuclear talks at the United Nations offices in Geneva October 15, 2013.

"Tantrums, weeping and hysteria won't help," says Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. Instead, he suggests that Americans unhappy about Crimea can perform sun salutations and "maybe watch some comedy sketch shows on TV"

There are several ways to cope with the anger one feels over the annexation of Crimea, according to a top Russian official.

“What can one advise our U.S. colleagues to do?” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov asked the Interfax news agency rhetorically.

“Spend more time in the open, practice yoga, stick to food-combining diets, maybe watch some comedy sketch shows on TV.”

The deputy foreign minister went on to criticize the U.S.’s official response to the annexation, which included slapping sanctions against several of President Vladimir Putin’s top aides, as childish and hysterical.

“Tantrums, weeping and hysteria won’t help,” he says.

Russia’s invasion and annexation of Crimea peninsula last month has made relations between Western powers and Moscow extremely tense.

Tens of thousands of Russian troops continue to mass along the Ukrainian border sparking fears of a possible invasion into the country’s east, which is home to a large population of ethnic Russians.

[Reuters]

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