Deutsche Welle Relieved After Top Russian Diplomat Dismisses Calls for Ban

BERLIN (Sputnik) - Deutsche Welle has welcomed a remark by top Russian diplomat Sergei Lavrov, who said the Foreign Ministry did not entertain the idea of stripping foreign media of their Russian licenses.

 

"Deutsche Welle welcomes the announcement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Russia does not see restrictions on Western media, including Deutsche Welle, as necessary or possible", the broadcaster said.

The media’s spokesman, Christoph Jumpelt, said that sanctions on Deutsche Welle would not have been justified. He denied that the outlet had apologised for the offending tweet, saying there must have been some kind of misunderstanding. 

The report comes after the state-run German broadcaster struck up fury in summer with a tweet in Russian that seemed to back the unauthorised protests against the exclusion of opposition candidates from a Moscow council race.

The head of a Russian parliamentary committee probing foreign meddling said he would ask the Foreign Ministry to consider barring Deutsche Welle from operating in Russia.