► Why this ban?
This is the last leg of a soap opera that started on December 16. On that day, the day of the launch of Russia Today in Germany (RT-DE), the YouTube platform suspended the German language account of this television channel funded by the Russian government. YouTube invokes the channel’s failure to comply with the site’s directives concerning the fight once morest disinformation, in particular on the question of Covid-19.
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A few days later, the German media regulator (ZAK) suspended the broadcasting of Russia Today via the Eutelsat satellite. Reason given: the Serbian license held by RT for cable and satellite broadcasting in Europe is not sufficient for broadcasting in Germany. Having a production company in Berlin, the chain must have a license in the country. Latest event: Wednesday, February 2, the same regulatory body banned the broadcasting of the television channel on the Internet and on mobile applications. According to the ZAK, the “necessary permissions” have not been “neither requested nor granted”.
► How did Russia react?
The Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday “reprisals once morest German media accredited in Russia”. It is now done. Thursday, February 3, he confirmed the ban on satellite broadcasting of the international public television channel Deutsche Welle, the closure of the Moscow office and the withdrawal of accreditation from journalists in post.
However, that would only be “the first stage of retaliatory measures”, according to a press release from the ministry. Moscow indeed announces sanctions to come once morest “representatives of the German state and public structures involved in the restriction of the broadcast of RT”. Deutsche Welle might also be classified as “foreign agent”. Verifications would be in progress.
As for the managers of the RT-DE channel, they evoke political motivations in their ban in Germany and have announced that they will continue broadcasting. The channel was still accessible online this Thursday, February 3.
► What political consequences can this ban have?
This case comes once morest a backdrop of growing tensions between Moscow and Berlin, since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, the cyberattack carried out by Russian hackers once morest the Bundestag in 2015, the murder of a Chechen by the Russian secret services at the heart of Berlin in 2019 and the Navalny affair in 2020. “It complicates relationships that are already very bad”, confirms expert Alena Epifanova, from the DGAP center in Berlin. “But this case has to be put in a broader context. Germany is trying to protect itself from misinformation wherever it comes from. RT-DE is in the line of sight but is not the only one. Germany is also trying to act once morest disinformation and hate speech on Facebook and Telegram”, believes this specialist in German-Russian relations.
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The German authorities, for their part, are trying to dissociate this affair from the Ukrainian file in order to remain a credible partner in the current diplomatic process. On Wednesday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz confirmed that he wanted to travel to Moscow soon to meet President Vladimir Putin. “It is obvious that this case will not facilitate his work”, note Alena Epifanova.