Artem Chigvintsev Says It's 'Ludicrous' Parents Haven't Met Son Matteo in Person Yet: 'Not Normal'

Artem Chigvintsev's parents, who reside in Russia, were unable to attend his wedding to Nikki Bella and have yet to meet their grandson Matteo, 2

Photo: MediaPunch/Shutterstock

Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev were missing two very important guests from their wedding.

During Thursday's premiere of the E! special Nikki Bella Says I Do, the couple discussed the setbacks of putting together their wedding in just a month.

"My biggest issue is I'm not planning on getting married again and I want to make sure my parents can be there, and my family can be there and my brother," Chigvintsev explained. "They've never met Matteo [the couple's 2-year-old son] and it'd be the perfect way of them meeting our son."

Bella, 39, was in agreement, telling him, "I just really want your parents to be there."

Chigvintsev, 40, went on to explain that with the current situation in Russia, there was "no way possible his parents could make" the wedding in the United States.

"When you actually say it out loud, it makes it even more real," he explained to cameras. "It's been challenging because you feel like you've been cut off from that world which has been really frustrating. Sometimes I feel helpless."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Nikki Bella Instagram

Speaking to Bella, Chigvintsev continued, "I can't believe my parents haven't even held my son."

"It's not normal. It's ludicrous that that's the case," he continued. "God forbid if my parents never meet my son in person, that would be the most devastating thing. You can never get that back."

Speaking to the cameras, Bella acknowledged how difficult the wedding situation was becoming for the pair.

"The one thing I've realized in being a fiancée to him, Artem is definitely a realist," she shared. "Artem is so close to his family, but yet they're so far away. Artem doesn't have a lot of people here in America."

Bella continued, "It makes me so emotional because I'm all about family. Family is number one in my life. My son doesn't get to meet his grandparents. I'm starting to realize that getting married in Napa Valley is not going to work."

"My parents live their lives for my brother and I," Chigvintsev said while fighting back tears. "You're supposed to grow up and take care of them. I feel so hopeless in that sense. I can't even send them money anymore."

Nikki Bella Instagram

The couple recently spoke to PEOPLE about the wedding series and briefly discussed their inability to have Chigvinstev's parents — who reside in Russia — attend their Parisian wedding in August.

"I think it's one of those decisions that we had to make just because if there would be a way of getting them, they would be determined — like we just need more time, and then there might be slight possibility we'd postpone. But because after trying every single possible option, we quickly realized that it's just impossible to make it happen," Chigvinstev told PEOPLE.

Bella added, "But we kept having hope up until the end," noting that E! and NBC tried to help explore options for getting Chigvinstev's parents to the nuptials.

Asked if his parents have had the opportunity to meet Mateo yet, the Dancing With the Stars pro replied, "We have WhatsApp and FaceTime."

"It's coming," Bella added. "We're praying hard."

Nikki Bella Says I Do airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on E!