The governor of Bali commented on accusations of "special dislike" for Russians

The governor of Bali And Wayan Koster rejected accusations of bias against Russian tourists.

"I don't look at it as if Russians are behaving badly in Bali, and I don't draw such a conclusion," he told RIA Novosti.

According to him, local authorities apply the same approach to people from any country.

"There were people from Europe, from Australia, from all sorts of places," he added.

Addressing directly to Russian tourists, he urged to take care of this unique place.

"Coming to Bali is not just a matter of entertainment, enjoyment or investment. You need to understand that Bali is a world treasure that needs to be preserved together… If we don't take care of it, Bali will disappear," Koster said.

In addition, he expressed gratitude to Russia for the increase in the number of tourists to Bali.

"The numbers are growing every year. Now Russia is already in 12th place, and the growth here is very fast, Russia is moving very fast in terms of the number of visitors to Bali," the governor concluded.

As reported by EADaily, he previously stated that the Bali authorities are liquidating the so-called "Russian" and "Ukrainian" villages, which were formed in the form of ethnic enclaves as a result of the acquisition of real estate.

He pointed out that this trend has led to the emergence of informal ethnic settlements. The Governor stressed that this practice contradicts local cultural norms and laws of Indonesia.

In addition, in 2023, the governor of Bali called for an end to issuing visas to Russians and Ukrainians on arrival due to alleged "bad behavior" on the part of Russian and Ukrainian tourists. After that, Wayan Koster was accused of discriminating against tourists from the two countries.