The Uzbek ambassador has been summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry to protest against statements by the rector of the University of Mass Communications, Kudratkhodjaev, about residents of the republic who do not speak the Uzbek language

Kudratkhodjaev called residents of the country who do not speak Uzbek "occupiers or idiots".

Kudratkhodjaev called residents of the country who do not speak Uzbek “occupiers or idiots”.

The Foreign Ministry said that Kudratkhodjaev’s remarks were made “in an extremely offensive and absolutely unacceptable form”.