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Russia slaps undesirable tag on Wilfried Martens Center for European Studies

"It has been established that the activities the Center has been hosting since 2014 under the guise of educational outreach have been aimed solely at painting the Russian Federation in a negative light," the statement reads

MOSCOW, August 3. /TASS/. The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has recognized the activities of the Wilfried Martens Center for European Studies as undesirable in the country, the office said in a statement.

"After studying the materials received, the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office made a decision to recognize as undesirable the activities of the Wilfried Martens Center for European Studies, a non-governmental organization created by former Belgian Prime Minister Wilfried Martens in Brussels in 2007 under the auspices of the European People's Party as a think tank offering new policy options to EU countries," the statement reads.

"It has been established that the activities the Center has been hosting since 2014 under the guise of educational outreach have been aimed solely at painting the Russian Federation in a negative light, at justifying the need for a military, political and information standoff with Russia and more sanctions pressure in order to stifle the economic development of our country," the Prosecutor General’s Office pointed out.

Visiting foreign pseudo-experts, who have Russian citizenship but receive funding from overseas, promote the idea of economic and constitutional reforms that will allegedly be necessary after a change of government in Russia, the agency added. The center also seeks to put a negative spin on Russian nationals and what is happening in Russia, something that is totally different from the real situation. After the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, the non-governmental organization has been promoting the need to impose additional sanctions on Russia and its people and increase comprehensive assistance, including military aid, to the Kiev regime, the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office emphasized.