Moscow's media crackdown: Russia responds to US accusations against RT network

Russia announced that it would take retaliatory measures against U.S. media in response to recent charges filed by the United States against Russian media executives and state broadcaster RT.

Washington has accused RT of attempting to influence the 2024 presidential election through a scheme involving money laundering and online content production by an American company, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media sources.

The U.S. Treasury and State Departments also announced additional actions targeting RT and its top editor, Margarita Simonyan. U.S. officials claim that Russia's actions aim to exacerbate political divisions within the U.S. and diminish public support for American aid to Ukraine amidst its conflict with Russia.

In reaction, Russia’s foreign ministry criticized the U.S. moves as an attempt to purge dissenting voices from the global media landscape and to stoke fears among U.S. voters about Russia as a fabricated external threat. Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, condemned the U.S. actions, stating, "When the authorities resort to such primitive ways of influencing their voters, this is the decline of 'liberal democracies'."

She also warned that any attempts to expel Russian journalists from the U.S. or create unacceptable conditions for their work, including through visa restrictions, would prompt symmetrical or asymmetric retaliatory measures against American media.

The response from RT was notably sarcastic. The media outlet commented, "Three things are certain in life: death, taxes and RT's interference in the US elections," in response to the U.S. charges. RT, which had ceased its U.S. operations after major television distributors dropped it following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, accused the U.S. of attempting to stifle its competitive presence.

Simonyan dismissed the charges as an effort to undermine RT and limit its influence. The Kremlin has previously labelled U.S. intelligence claims of Russian election meddling as absurd, suggesting that U.S. intelligence agencies are intent on portraying Russia as an enemy.