Aleksey MeshkovPARIS, Feb 10French partners should take a closer look at the history of the German TV channel Deutsche Welle, sanctions against the media are not the way of Russia, but in some cases there is a limit, Russian Ambassador to Paris Alexei Meshkov said in an interview with RIA Novosti. «This issue is always on our agenda Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) spoke on this topic with (Emmanuel) Macron. This is a constant topic in the dialogue between Sergei Viktorovich Lavrov and his colleague (Jean-Yves) Le Drian,» the diplomat said. He recalled that several years ago during his visit to France, Lavrov refused to go to a press conference until Russian journalists were allowed into the hall. Meshkov stressed that discrimination against Russian media in France is completely unacceptable. «I would advise our French colleagues to take a closer look at the story with Deutsche Welle. Maybe this will affect their mental process,” he said. “I didn’t mean anything. I’m talking about respecting freedom of speech and the right of the Russian media to operate on a common basis in the country. Of course, the situation here (in France) is not like that. There (in Germany) they simply did not let me work. And RT France and Sputnik are working despite the restrictions. But (the situation with Deutsche Welle) is just evidence that our patience is running out,» the Russian ambassador emphasized. According to Meshkov, the issue of the work of the Russian media in France was raised before the authorities in Paris and the OSCE representatives on freedom issues «We will not leave this topic, we will continue to put it before the French,» he added. But in some cases, there is already a limit that requires reciprocity,» Meshkov said, speaking about the closure of the Deutsche Welle office in Moscow in response to the cessation of broadcasting of the RT DE TV channel. 
RT France commented on reports of an investigation against the channelOn February 1, the Commission for Registration and Supervision of Media Regulators of Germany officially banned the broadcasting of the RT DE TV channel in Germany, saying that the broadcast organizers did not have the necessary permission. RT DE Productions is appealing the decision of the German regulator in court. The Russian Foreign Ministry explained that the TV channel operated on the basis of a license issued by Serbia and in full compliance with the European Convention on Transfrontier Television, to which Germany is also a party. In response to the termination of the broadcasting of the RT DE TV channel, Moscow, in particular, closed the Deutsche Welle office in Russia and canceled the accreditations of all employees of its Russian bureau, and also stopped satellite and other broadcasting of the channel in Russia. At the same time, a high-ranking source in the Russian Foreign Ministry told RIA Novosti that the measures taken against the German media in Russia are retaliatory, and if Germany changes its position on RT DE, then Russia will respond positively. The source also noted that during the visit of German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock to Moscow, ways out of the crisis around RT DE were proposed, but Berlin refused to discuss it. Earlier, in the material of the French magazine Challenges, it was reported that Arcom, the audiovisual and digital communications regulatory body, had launched an investigation «in relation to the presentation of information by the RT France channel, financed from the Russian state budget.» It was noted that «several associations reported omissions in reporting on crises, such as the Yellow Vests or the situation in Syria and the Central African Republic.» The head of RT France, Ksenia Fedorova, commenting on the situation, called this action planned. The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, noted that the attacks on the French office of RT are difficult to separate from what is happening with the TV channel in Germany, «unequivocal statements by the British Foreign Office» and those «supposedly reports that came out just over a week ago on the website of the US State Department. According to her, the United States, Germany, France and Britain have declared war on the Russian TV channel RT. Scholz
