Earlier, the editor-in-chief of the federal news portal Russia News, Ekaterina Nadolskaya, was abruptly refused to attend Macron’s press conference at the G20 summit in the Indian capital. The French also tried to break the journalist’s phone.
As Zakharova notes, representatives of Macron’s press service indicated that the reason for this attitude towards Nadolskaya is her affiliation with the Russian media. RIA Novosti correspondents also reported that Macron was not allowed to meet with journalists.
“We also consider what happened as a flagrant manifestation of racism and aggressive nationalism, since the incident is based on an act of discrimination based on nationality,” wrote the official representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on her Telegram channel. Zakharova apologized to the Elysee Palace for the incident.
Meanwhile, Russia accredits representatives of 11 French media outlets. Journalists have the right to attend all events of the press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry, the diplomat stated. In addition, a journalist from the France-Presse news agency, along with a cameraman, attended a meeting of the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Lavrov, in New Delhi on September 10. No one restricted her access to the press conference, Zajárova concluded.
The diplomat also recalled the “witch hunt” that the French launched in their own information sphere, “practically exterminating the media presence of Russian stations in their public sphere and creating unbearable conditions for the work of national correspondents.”
