2023-09-12 10:30:00
INFORMATION – A Russian journalist was prevented from covering President Emmanuel Macron’s press conference during the G20 summit, which took place on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi, India. Ekaterina Nadolskaya, editor-in-chief of the media Russia News, was turned away by the press service of the Élysée, according to a video broadcast on social networks. The Russian Foreign Ministry, which confirmed the information, criticized an act “racist” et “discriminatory”demanding an apology from the French presidency.
The G20 summit, chaired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, closed on Saturday September 10 in the Indian capital, in the absence of Chinese Presidents, Xi Jinping, and Russian Presidents, Vladimir Putin. The participants reached, despite the reluctance of observers on the eve of this meeting, a final consensual declaration, which the French President mentioned during his press conference held at midday. Emmanuel Macron judged “insufficient” the results of this summit in terms of climate, evoking, at the same time, the powerful earthquake which left more than 2,100 dead in Morocco and the coup d’état in Niger.
Russian journalists are unwelcome persons
Topics discussed in front of an audience of journalists, among whom Ekaterina Nadolskaya was not included. According to a video filmed by herself, the editor-in-chief of the media Russia News was not allowed to attend the French president’s press conference. The images, broadcast on social networks, showed her trying to obtain explanations from a man, presented as a member of the Élysée press service. “Why can’t Russian journalists [entrer à la conférence de presse de] Macron ?”she questions him, without obtaining any answers.
The video, which lasts around fifty seconds, then shows journalists of other nationalities accessing the conference room without obstacle. The sequence was interrupted by another employee, who tried to confiscate or drop Ekaterina Nadolskaya’s phone.
Russia demanded an apology from France to Russian journalists who were rudely not allowed to attend Macron’s press conference at the G20 summit in New Delhi.
An employee of Macron’s press service even tried to break the phone of Russia News editor-in-chief Ekaterina Nadolskaya,… pic.twitter.com/7tQ0B1sCLX
— Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) September 11, 2023
Scenes which caused the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry (MAE) to react. In a statement, Maria Zakharova announced that “the editor-in-chief of Russia News, Ekaterina Nadolskaya, was brutally refused access to French President Emmanuel Macron’s conference at the G20 summit in New Delhi. In addition, the French tried to break his cell phone.”
For Moscow, the repression of Nadolskaya is a “discrimination” based on the nationality of this journalist. An act “racist”says Ms. Zakharova, who wonders if “Western media, worried about freedom of expression and concerned about rights (for example, Politico Europe), will not once again notice this new attack by Macron’s team against the Russian media. Will they still be surprised by our retaliatory measures?she writes.
Moscow demands official apology
The MFA spokesperson accuses France, “vanguard of Western pseudo-democracies”to demonstrate “racial discrimination” and of “violations of the fundamental principles of democracy”.
“Not only has Paris launched a veritable ‘witch hunt’ within its own information space, virtually destroying the media presence of Russian broadcasters, they also do not hesitate to export this contempt for pluralism of opinions and media rights (…) to the countries to which France has been preaching democracy and freedom of expression for decades.”, lit-on.
???? M.V.#Zakharova: Today, Russia News editor-in-chief E. Nadolskaya was rudely denied access to a press conference @EmmanuelMacron at the summit #G20. The reason is that she represents the Russian media.
❗️ We demand an apology from the Elysee Palace to her.
???? pic.twitter.com/0v9I8FbkAy
— Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ???????? (@MID_RF) September 10, 2023
Unlike Ekaterina Nadolskaya, “no one stopped the AFP correspondent and cameraman from covering the press conference of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the end of the G20 summit”. In addition, representatives of 11 French media outlets are still accredited in Russia and have “free access to the ministry’s press events”, continues the spokesperson for the MAE.
Maria Zakharova claims that this incident is “a blatant manifestation of racism because it is based on an act of discrimination based on nationality”. Moscow demands an apology from the Élysée from journalist Ekaterina Nadolskaya.
A few days after the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the European Commission announced a broadcast ban on Russian media like Sputnik et Russia Today (RT) on European territory.
In France, the RT branch announced in January 2023 its “closing”the day after his bank accounts were frozen. “After 5 years of relentlessness, the authorities in power have achieved their goals: the closure of RT France (…) The General Directorate of the Treasury has decided to freeze the bank accounts of RT France making it impossible for us to continue our activity.”Xenia Fedorova, president and director of the channel, announced on Twitter.
“The freezing of the accounts of RT France will lead to retaliatory measures against French media in Russia. They will be remembered if the French authorities do not stop terrorizing Russian journalists.”Russia reacted.
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