Moscow reacted drastically in the dispute over a ban on broadcasting the German-language program of its state broadcaster RT DE: Deutsche Welle was banned in Russia.
Russia has issued a broadcasting ban on Deutsche Welle, the foreign broadcaster of the Federal Republic of Germany. In addition, the Russian Foreign Ministry ordered the closure of the correspondent’s office in Moscow and the withdrawal of journalists’ accreditations.
Moscow was reacting to a ban on broadcasting the German-language program of its state broadcaster RT DE. Deutsche Welle (DW), which has had broadcasting licenses in Russia since 2005, protested against the Russian government’s “overreaction” and announced legal action. The actions of the Foreign Ministry in Moscow further strained the already tense relations between Berlin and Moscow.
DW sees itself as a pawn
According to a statement, DW director Peter Limbourg said: “We are being played with here in a way that the media only have to experience in autocracies.” The broadcaster spoke of an “absurd reaction”. “Until the measures are officially sent to us, we will continue to report from our office in Moscow,” Limbourg said. “Even if we eventually had to close it, it would not affect our coverage of Russia. Rather, we would significantly increase reporting.”
The Minister of State for Culture and Media, Claudia Roth, described the DW broadcasting ban as “in no way acceptable”. While RT DE is broadcasting without a license and has not applied for a license, DW is now having an existing license revoked. Deutsche Welle is also organized independently of the state. The German state has no influence on the programming.
Solidarity in Germany
The leaders of public broadcasting in Germany – ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio – showed their solidarity with Deutsche Welle. ARD Chair Patricia Schlesinger, ZDF Director Thomas Bellut and Deutschlandradio Director Stefan Raue said in a statement: “Free, independent reporting is radically restricted here in order to exert political pressure. The fact that this means that freedom of the press is being made a bargaining chip fills us with great concern.”
According to its own account, DW has its licenses in Russia for its television channels DW English until 2025 and DW Deutsch until 2027, which are broadcast via Astra satellites. In the German program there is also a window in Russian with a total of 18 hours per week. These broadcasts would also be distributed via several Russian providers. Politicians and propagandists loyal to the Kremlin had repeatedly attacked Deutsche Welle’s Russian program.
In Germany, the regulators of the competent Commission for Licensing and Supervision (ZAK) at the media authorities had prohibited the organization and distribution of the television program RT DE. The lack of a broadcasting license was given as the reason for the ban published on Wednesday.
Moscow: DW a “foreign agent”
The Russian Foreign Ministry spoke only of a “first stage”. This also includes a procedure to declare Deutsche Welle a “foreign agent”. In addition, representatives of state and social structures in the Federal Republic who had participated in the action against RT DE should be blacklisted. The list will not be published. However, those listed could no longer enter Russia in the future.
The German Association of Journalists (DJV) condemned the ban on broadcasting. There is no justification for this “drastic censorship measure,” said DJV national chairman Frank Überall. He called for a clear protest from the federal government. Verdi federal board member Christoph Schmitz demanded that Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) press for the ban on broadcasting to be lifted during his upcoming visit to Russia.
The FDP foreign politician Alexander Graf Lambsdorff explained that DW is “just not a state broadcaster like Russia Today, but offers an independent program”. The decision shows once again that the Russian government is moving away from universal values such as democracy and freedom of expression and that the country is moving further into self-isolation. Lambsdorff said: “Right now the Russian-language offer of Deutsche Welle on the Internet must be strengthened.”
At her meeting with her colleague Sergei Lavrov in Moscow in January, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock declared that state radio was not permitted in Germany. This also applies to the USA, for example. In Germany, the regulation also has historical reasons because of the role of the state media in National Socialism.
Kremlin criticizes RT decision
Nevertheless, the Kremlin criticized the decision on RT DE. “The situation is perfectly clear: a Russian mass medium, I would even say an international mass medium, will be banned from broadcasting in Germany. This is nothing more than an attack on the freedom of speech, »said spokesman Dmitry Peskov. The Russian Foreign Ministry announced further steps. The representatives of the German media in Moscow were asked to provide information by next Tuesday as to whether they were receiving money from the German state directly or indirectly – for example through advertising.
The spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, criticized the fact that the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said nothing about the broadcast ban on RT DE and did not advocate media freedom. RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan proposed on Wednesday to take action against Deutsche Welle in Russia.
RT – formerly Russia Today – also broadcasts in Spanish and Arabic in the USA and other countries and sees its German-language program as a contribution to the diversity of opinion in Europe. Critics accuse RT of Kremlin propaganda and disinformation.
Source: Stern
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