Brussels 06.02.2022 Anna van Densky Moscow took retaliatory measures towards German broadcaster Deutsche Welle following Berlin’s decision to ban RT DE in Germany to demonstrate that further steps in this direction will come at a cost, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday, February 5 in an interview.

“We respond, we’ve been taught, we are doing this to demonstrate that further steps in this direction will come at a cost,” the diplomat stressed.

On February 2, the Commission on Licensing and Supervision banned the broadcasting of the RT DE TV channel in Germany since there was no required license under the media law.

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced earlier that Moscow was closing the Deutsche Welle’s news bureau in Russia as the first stage of retaliatory measures following the German regulator’s move to ban RT DE in Germany.

The other measures will include the withdrawal of credentials from all staff members at Deutsche Welle’s Russian bureau and the launch of a process aimed at identifying Germany’s government and public agencies involved in banning RT DE from broadcasting and putting other kinds of pressure on the Russian media outlet, who will eventually be barred from entering Russia.

“The decision by the Russian authorities to ban the German public service broadcaster Deutsche Welle from broadcasting in Russia, revoke the accreditation of its employees, suggest to consider designating it as a ”foreign agent” and close its office in Moscow, is unacceptable and lacks any justification” the spokesperson for the EU diplomacy said.