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Russian, German top diplomats discuss German media coverage of Moscow protests

Sergey Lavrov said he "will not repeat the grievances that we have in relation to this"

MOSCOW, August 21. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov informed that he had discussed German media coverage of recent Moscow protests with his German colleague Heiko Maas.

"Of course, we arrived at the issue of the Deutsche Welle’s coverage of the protests that took place in Moscow over the last several weeks," the Russian top diplomat said during Wednesday’s press conference on the outcomes of the talks with Maas. "I will not repeat the grievances that we have in relation to this. However, we have the information that our ministry received from an official representative and made public, and I think that objective observers would make their own conclusions: whether it is ideal reporting or it cannot be called ideal."

Lavrov also noted Europe’s stance on Russian media. "We also mentioned that German branches of RT were notified a couple of days ago that banks are ceasing their service without any reasons provided," he said. "We have never introduced restrictions against any media outlet from Europe and other regions, there is access everywhere."

"I understand your attempt to find something juicy in all these events, but this is life, there are laws. Protests are regulated by law, there is a possibility to agree on a place and time [of the rally], the procedure is written and well-known," the Russian top diplomat stressed. "And if people want to provoke a scandal, of course they would refuse the place offered to them and attend an unsanctioned protest."

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova informed of the attempts by the US and German media (namely, the Deutsche Welle) to interfere in Russia’s domestic affairs through their coverage of unsanctioned protests in Moscow.