French Satellite Company Censors Russian NTV Mir Broadcaster

A number of Russian media outlets and broadcasters have ended up being banned in the European Union following the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. Brussels and several EU states have accused them of spreading "Kremlin propaganda." Moscow, in turn, has slammed the EU for suppressing freedom of speech.

French satellite operator Eutelsat has unilaterally stopped broadcasting Russian NTV Mir in Europe following a request from the Paris-based Regulatory Authority for Audiovisual and Digital Communication (ARCOM).

The French regulator said the channel has repeatedly portrayed "not only the Ukrainian leadership and the Ukrainian army, but also and above all the Ukrainian population, as adhering to the Nazi ideology." ARCOM said that it prompted the NTV Mir's ban order. It is unclear if the channel's broadcast can be picked via different satellite TV providers in Europe now.

Apart from NTV Mir, Eutelsat has previously banned several other Russian broadcasters from its satellites, including RT, Russia 24 and RTR Planeta.

Russian broadcasters, as well as their websites and social media accounts, have been targeted by EU bans since the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine on 24 February. Brussels justified the bans by invoking the need to combat "the Kremlin's propaganda."

Moscow described the EU and the European regulators' actions as acts of censorship, infringement on the freedom of speech and an attempt at cutting off Europeans from alternative news sources that are not broadcasting material in line with the state-approved agenda. Russia responded in kind, banning several major European broadcasters, such as BBC and Deutsche Welle, from operating in the country.

One of the blocked media outlets, RT France, attempted to challenge the ban in EU's court of appeals, but the latter turned down the lawsuit. The court ruled that Brussels had sufficient grounds to limit the freedom to broadcast for the company based on its alleged malign activities, described as such by the EU authorities themselves.