Moscow Expels German Journalists, Berlin Denies Closing Russia TV Bureau

Sumaira FH Published November 28, 2024 | 12:00 AM

Moscow, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th Nov, 2024) Russia said Wednesday that it would expel two journalists from Germany's ARD national network in a like-for-like move after a Russian state broadcaster said its journalists had been ordered to leave Berlin.

Germany denied closing the Russian channel's bureau -- but appeared to accept that the Russian journalists had their residency in the country revoked -- and slammed Russia's retaliation as "unacceptable".

Russian state-controlled media has faced broadcast bans and other restrictions since Moscow launched its Ukraine offensive, accused by Western regulators of spreading disinformation.

Moscow has responded with what it calls tit-for-tat measures.

ARD said two employees were told to hand over accreditations by December 16 and said the decision "marks a new low point in relations with Russia" where "pressure on Western journalists... has continued to increase" since Russia began its Ukraine offensive in February 2022.

The German foreign ministry called the expulsion of ARD journalists "unacceptable" in a post on X.

Russia said it was acting in response.