MOSCOW: Russia announced on Wednesday that it would expel two journalists from Germany’s ARD network in a retaliatory move after the Russian state-controlled Channel One claimed its correspondents in Berlin had been ordered to leave Germany.
The escalating tit-for-tat dispute between Moscow and Berlin reflects growing tensions over media freedoms and reporting in both countries since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
ARD, Germany’s national broadcaster, confirmed that its Moscow-based correspondent Frank Aischmann and cameraman Sven Feller had been instructed to hand over their press accreditations by December 16.
The network condemned the expulsion order, describing it as “a new low” in relations with Russia, where pressure on Western journalists has been intensifying since the start of the Ukraine war.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the expulsion of ARD staff was a direct response to Germany’s actions against Channel One, Russia’s state-run broadcaster.
Channel One had reported that its correspondent Ivan Blagoi and cameraman Dmitry Volkov were ordered to leave Germany by mid-December. The German authorities cited security concerns, a claim that was firmly rejected by Berlin.
ALSO READ: Israel Conducts Deadly Strikes on Syria as Lebanon Truce Begins
Zakharova insisted that Russia would only consider accrediting new ARD journalists if Germany eased restrictions on Russian media and allowed Channel One’s Berlin bureau to operate fully again. She accused Berlin of engaging in “unfriendly actions” towards Russian journalists.
Germany’s foreign ministry, however, denied that it had shut down Channel One’s Berlin office, with spokesman Christian Wagner calling the reports “false.” He emphasized that Russian journalists were still allowed to report freely in Germany, though he did not clarify the status of the two Russian reporters.
The Channel One journalists were reportedly informed that their requests for extended residence permits had been rejected, citing security reasons, though no specific explanation was given. Blagoi’s dismissal followed a report on November 24 regarding the detention of German citizen Nikolai Gaiduk by Russia’s FSB security service, which Channel One suggested had been part of a larger Western-backed operation.
German officials have repeatedly accused Channel One of spreading pro-Kremlin propaganda, including justifying Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and promoting disinformation within Russian-speaking communities in Germany.
