BERLIN, December 22. /TASS/. Russia is upset that its German-language television channel was taken off the air and regards the move as unfair competition, the Russian ambassador to Germany said on Wednesday.
"We are extremely concerned by reports that the broadcast of the satellite signal of the Russian German-language television channel RT DE, which went on the air on December 16, 2021, was stopped at the request of the German media authority," the ambassador, Sergey Nechayev, told reporters. "We are stating with regret that RT DE has come under incessant pressure in Germany that aims to make it impossible or as hard as possible for the Russian company to start working for the local audience."
RT DE is targeted because it creates strong competition in news broadcasting and provides an alternative and professional perspective on global events, he said. The crackdown on the company runs counter to statements that censorship is unacceptable and fails to uphold such values as freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom to obtain information, the diplomat said.
RT reported that MABB earlier forced the satellite operator Eutelsat 9В to pull the new German-language channel RT DE that broadcast from Moscow. The channel said it regarded the move as illegal and said it was confident a court would overturn the decision.
MABB said it has authority over the channel’s licensing as most of the channel’s staff are based in Berlin. That was the reason why Luxembourg refused to issue a license in summer.