"It [the law] is aimed at preventing the intrusion of foreign states into Russia's interior political life and to create favorable and transparent conditions for the financing of non-governmental organizations," Putin said.
Putin said the government would continue to support non-governmental organizations despite the recent scandal concerning the alleged espionage by British diplomats and MI6's involvement in financing Russian NGOs.
"We will continue supporting non-governmental organizations," Putin said and added that reason the law was passed in Russia was now clear.
NGOs with financing from other countries are thought to have played a major role in the revolutions that have swept former Soviet states in recent years, prompting some Russian politicians to voice concerns that similar activity was being carried out in Russia. Parliament passed a bill restricting the operation of NGOs at the end of last year.
The West largely saw the bill as a Kremlin tactic to tighten control over foreign activity in the country and restrict democratic freedoms.
