The Russian Foreign Ministry said Wednesday the move was in retaliation for Ottawa’s decision to ban RT in March.
“It is with regret that we continue to see open attacks on Russian media from so-called Western collectives who call themselves civilized,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters. .
“A decision was made to retaliate – I emphasize, retaliatory – for Canada’s actions,” he said.
Russia’s response came two months after Ottawa’s decision to ban RT’s broadcasts in English and French. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) said on March 16 that maintaining authorization to distribute RT and RT in France was not in the public interest.
At the time, the CRTC claimed that the RT program was not consistent with Canadian standards or its policy objectives, and expressed concern that the media sought to undermine the sovereignty of other countries, demean Canadians of certain ethnic origins and to undermine democratic institutions in Canada.
The decision was announced after a campaign of complaints launched by Ukrainian ethnic organizations.
British, European and Australian authorities have also banned RT and other Russian media since the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
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