On Thursday, the US State Department published a statement on behalf of Washington and a dozen of its allied countries, which criticizes the Russian authorities for allegedly “increasing oppression against independent journalists and the media,” which, according to the United States, is expressed through the law on foreign media agents, the idea which appeared and was implemented in the United States itself.
“The undersigned members of the Coalition for Media Freedom express deep concern about the increasing harassment by the Russian government of independent journalists and media in Russia. Freedom of the media is vital to the effective functioning of free and open societies, and is also essential to the protection of human rights and basic freedoms,” – said in a statement released by the State Department.
In addition to the United States, this document was signed by Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
In their statement, the signatory countries condemned the alleged persecution by the Russian authorities against independent journalists and the media.
“We urge Russia to comply with its international obligations and obligations in the field of human rights, as well as to respect and guarantee freedom of the media and the safety of journalists,” the document says.
In this regard, the United States and its allies separately referred to the law on foreign media agents, including in the context of the work of the US Congress-funded media company Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty.
“It is becoming increasingly clear that the Russian government intends to force RFE / RL to end its long-standing presence in Russia – just as it has forced several other independent media outlets to close in recent years,” the statement said.
RT America is on the American list of foreign agents – the US Department of Justice added the channel there in 2017 under a 1938 law. At the same time, many other foreign state-owned media, such as the British BBC, Chinese CCTV, French TV channel France 24, German radio station Deutsche Welle, are not registered in this capacity. Then RT was deprived of accreditation in the US Congress. Sputnik USA partner companies were also included in the list of foreign agents.
In response to the actions of the United States, the Russian Ministry of Justice in 2017 entered a number of Radio Liberty projects into the register of foreign media agents. They are part of the media company Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, which in turn is funded by the US Congress.
The United States has had the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) since 1938. According to the provisions of this law, companies or persons registered as a foreign agent, which may be required by the country’s Department of Justice, must disclose information about their activities, including financial ones, to the American authorities. Registration as a foreign agent in many cases seriously hinders the operation of the organization and may entail reputational or other risks when working in the United States.