Russia to take retaliatory measures against French media accused of terrorizing Russian Journalists
Moscow has warned on Saturday (01.21.2023) that it will take retaliatory measures against French media operating in Russia if the State continue to freeze bank accounts of RT France, a French subsidiary of the Russian chain RT that is suspended in the European Union (EU).
“The freezing of the accounts of RT France will imply retaliatory measures against the French media in Russia. They will be remembered if the French authorities do not stop terrorizing Russian journalists,” warned a source from Russian diplomacy, quoted by the agencies. Russian press Ria Novosti and Tass.
Friday,RT France unions had denounced the freezing of the chain’s accounts. “There are almost 100 employees and around fifty journalists who will probably be left without work,” the FO and SNJ unions of RT France denounced in a statement, for whom the accounts were blocked “by decision of the State”.
The French Ministry of Finance said the chain’s assets had been frozen in accordance with recent European sanctions, and not at the initiative of France. The European sanctions approved in December provide for the “freezing of assets” of the entities in question, according to a source from the French ministry.
March onwards, the EU banned the broadcasting, both on television and on the internet, of the media outlets Sputnik and RT (including its French-speaking version RT France) for being instruments of “disinformation” of the Kremlin. This latest action from the French authorities further pushed Russia to take retaliatory measures against French media operating in its country.
