Russian sports minister Pavel Kolobkov said it is time to forgive his country.

Russia is still not being honest about its doping problems and is not ready for a full return to global competition, according to leading figures from the anti-doping community.

Russia’s anti-doping agency, athletics federation, main anti-doping lab and national Paralympic committee are currently suspended, and there are growing calls to ban its athletes from next year’s winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

But Russian sports minister Pavel Kolobkov told the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) annual symposium in Lausanne there was no “state-sponsored” doping in Russia and said it is time to forgive his country.

Russian Minister of Sport Pavel Kolobkov provides an update on Russian anti-doping activities at WADA Symposium pic.twitter.com/iMeqaOAtLW — WADA (@wada_ama) March 13, 2017

The former Olympic fencing champion also said the “greatest tragedy” is that clean Russian athletes are being punished and asked why so much faith has been put in the claims of ex-Moscow lab boss Grigory Rodchenkov, the main whisteblower for the WADA-funded investigation that uncovered Russia’s “institutionalised” doping.

The leader of that investigation, Richard McLaren, later explained why he considered Rodchenkov, who is now in hiding in the United States, to be a “truthful witness” and said there was clear evidence of state involvement.

When asked if he agreed with Kolobkov that Russia’s anti-doping system could be reinstated by November, McLaren said: “I think it would be a real struggle and a lot of hard work to meet that timetable, but I suppose that it could be met.

“Whether it is appropriate, and should they be back under the tent of the world sport community, is not something for me to decide.

Richard McLaren takes the floor and reiterates that IP Report mandate was to focus on institutionalised doping, not individual athletes. — WADA (@wada_ama) March 13, 2017

“I recognise (Kolobkov) is a politician and he needs to say a number of things.”

United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) chief Travis Tygart, however, was far less impressed by Kolobkov’s provocative speech.

Tygart said: “Not that all of us were expecting the apology to clean athletes that they deserve, but I thought the unapologetic and brazen approach was pretty generally stunning.

“I am glad that speech was not streamed because I think a lot of athletes around the world would be pretty disappointed. There’s a lot of talk but not much action.”

WADA Director of I&I Gunter Younger says the below are the most important ways to encourage Whistleblowers to come forward. Do you agree? pic.twitter.com/DcLsr0R4Us — WADA (@wada_ama) March 13, 2017

As chair of WADA’s athlete committee, former cross-country skiing star Beckie Scott has a good sense of what athletes around the world think about the Russian doping scandal, and the Canadian’s assessment of Kolobkov was damning.

Scott said: “It sounded like a persistent reluctance to accept the McLaren report.

“The expectation most athletes had was that (the report) would prompt real change. I’m not sure this is happening.”

WADA Athlete Chair Beckie Scott: athletes want to see meaningful graded sanction system with consequences for non-compliance introduced ASAP — WADA (@wada_ama) March 13, 2017

WADA’s former director general David Howman, well known for his straight-talking, agreed.

“Kolobkov stole this morning’s thunder. All the good things we talked about are now in the background,” said Howman, who left WADA last year.

“It’s all about Russia again. We haven’t got rid of the elephant in the room by a long chalk. It’s a repetition of what was said 12 months ago. It’s distressing.”

Kolobkov’s speech was the headline event in Lausanne, where more than 700 anti-doping experts have gathered for WADA’s annual get-together.

The former Olympic fencing champion, who replaced Vitaly Mutko as sports minister in October, said the decision by the International Association of Athletics Federations and International Paralympic Committee to ban Russian athletes from global competition, including Rio 2016, was “simply inhuman”.