BBC Claims About Russian Trace In French Protests Made Upon Bosses' Instruction - Simonyan

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th December, 2018) The BBC broadcaster's reports about alleged Russia's trace in "yellow vest" protests in France mean that the media outlet's employees are following the instructions of higher-ups, who decide what kind of news should be delivered, RT and Sputnik's editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan said on Sunday.

Earlier, BBC Russia reporter Olga Ivshina admitted that the broadcaster was searching for any proof of Moscow's alleged involvement in the ongoing "yellow vest" protests in France. Ivshina said about this in correspondence with a Russian correspondent, who covers the rallies from the French capital.

"This story shows us that we should not have any doubts regarding the fact that those individuals are working following instructions. A journalist girl is writing 'find a Russian trace for me, the higher-ups have asked for this.' Do you understand that? Her higher-ups are demanding that a Russian trace should be found. Which means that the information is being disseminated not in the usual manner � there is a story and we cover it � but with the help of bosses, who decide what should be reported," Simonyan told Rossiya 24 tv channel.

Simonyan added that the saddest part of the story was the fact that the fake news were released by the broadcaster's Russian branch and by a Russian national.

"Her superiors, financed by the Foreign Office of a state [the United Kingdom] whose attitude toward [Russia] is far from being friendly, ask her to find the proof of Russia's bad behavior, of a Russian trace.

And she goes out of her way to find that evidence. I do not understand how it can be possible neither from the ethical nor from the legal point of view and why it is happening in our country," Simonyan indicated.

According to the RT and Sputnik editor-in-chief, if a similar story was made public in the United States it would have serious legal implications.

The news comes as French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on December 9 that the French Secretariat-General for National Defense and Security (SGDSN) was looking into media reports about Russia's alleged involvement in the rallies. The Russian authorities, in turn, have stressed that Moscow considers the protests as France's internal affair, and called claims of Russia's alleged involvement slander.

France has been facing a wave of mass protests since mid-November, when the so-called yellow vests took to the streets to protest rising fuel prices and a planned hike in tax on diesel and carbon fuels. The French government has scrapped its planned hike in diesel taxes, but the "yellow vests" have since morphed into a broader movement against government policies and rising living costs.