Penetrating with a proud head

The singer, deputy of the State Duma, Joseph Kobzon, who is under sanctions of the European Union received a national visa and will be treated in Italy. This was confirmed in the Italian Foreign Ministry, the German Wave reports .

The representative of the foreign ministry emphasized that this is an exceptional case that does not have a political background. We are talking about a national visa for treatment, which allows Kobzon to be only in Italy. The Foreign Ministry explained the issuance of a visa to humanitarian reasons. This issue was agreed with other EU members, the diplomat emphasized. If at least one of the countries opposed, then Kobzon would be refused.

The representative of the Italian Foreign Ministry noted that he did not know whether someone could contribute to the singer in receiving a visa. According to him, the request was submitted from Kobzon itself.

On August 28, Kobzon said that in September he would go to Europe to continue treatment . According to the singer, President Vladimir Putin helped him to get a medical visa.

The next day, Kobzon said that diplomatic relations with the United States should be temporarily suspended . So he commented on the scandal with the American visa of the Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko. "They did not let Matvienko. There is not enough that she is the chairman of the Council, she is also a woman. They used some stupid sanctions. I would suspend all the diplomatic relations, so that the Americans would think that you can’t do this, you can’t joke with Russia. There is a Russian people, a free one, who loves their country. I would not recommend to joke with us," said Kobzon.

On August 30, Kobzon performed twice in Donetsk. At the same time, he called on politicians and cultural figures not to be afraid of sanctions from the West. “I would generally urge not to pay attention to it,” he said. The singer also suggested "respond symmetrically." “In general, my colleague on the advice of the Federation Senator Andrei Sobolev said the best about the sanctions:“ The veto was applied to Kobzon, they are not allowed into the European house. We put it on the veto, and generally put on sanctions, ”said Kobzon.

On February 16, Kobzon was included in the sanctions list of the European Union . Personal sanctions against the singer were imposed by Canada and Norway.

In the USA, Kobzon came for the last time in 1994. Since 1995, his visa was canceled by the State Department. The unofficial reason was called the possible ties of the singer with organized criminal groups in Russia. In April 2012, the US Embassy in Moscow again refused Kobzon on an entry visa due to "suspicions of criminal activity or ties with persons who committed crimes in the United States."

Seven years ago, doctors diagnosed prostate cancer at Kobzon. In Germany, he had an operation.