MOSCOW, February 3. /TASS/. The Russian Journalists' Union believes the measures against Deutsche Wellе, which are a response to the ban on RT DE, are appropriate, Vladimir Solovyov, the head of the group, told TASS.

"The Russian Journalists' Union always opposes any restrictions on the work of the media," he said. "However, when some bodies of a foreign country prevent Russian media from working, restrict their freedom, and violate freedom of speech, the Foreign Ministry has the right to take retaliatory measures."

According to Solovyov, Deutsche Welle in 2019 urged people to go to rallies, which, he said, news media shouldn’t do. "Deutsche Welle published many times very indecent caricatures of Vladimir Putin and other leaders of the Russian state," he said. "Nevertheless, it continued to work freely."

Solovyov said the response by the Russian Foreign Ministry was prompted by numerous attempts by the German authorities to ban the operation of RT DE. "The latest step by the German regulator became the last straw," he said. "The retaliatory measures are not by our choice and they are appropriate."

The Russian Foreign Ministry said Moscow, as it rolls out retaliatory measures in connection with the ban on the broadcasting of the RT DE TV channel in Germany, will close the office of the German television and radio company Deutsche Welle in Russia. Among other measures, it is also planned to cancel the accreditation of all employees of the Russian bureau of Deutsche Welle, start compiling a list of government officials and representatives of non-governmental institutions in Germany that were "involved in restricting the broadcasting of RT DE and otherwise putting pressure on the Russian media operator," who will then be banned from entering Russia. Later, Russia plans to end satellite and other broadcasting by Deutsche Welle.

The German media regulator has banned RT DE from broadcasting in German in Germany due to lack of a license, the regulator said in a statement on Wednesday. According to the document, RT DE, which requires a broadcasting license under German law, was neither granted nor requested permission. It therefore ordered the channel to halt broadcasting on air, on the Internet, through the mobile app and through the satellite.