The U.S. State Department expressing its concerns over Russia’s NGO and Internet blacklist law amounts to infringement in the country's internal affairs, a spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
“Such actions can only be perceived as attempts of rude and unacceptable interference in the work of Russian state authorities and the sovereign legislative process,” Konstantin Dolgov, the ministry’s human rights ombudsman, said in a statement.
“Moscow is not always satisfied with certain discussions and decisions by the U.S. Congress, but we’re principally abstaining from interfering with the legislative activity in the United States. We are entitled to expect it to be mutual,” Dolgov said.
The law on NGOs, branding politically active nongovernmental organizations that use foreign funding “foreign agents,” was passed by the State Duma this week, along with a law introducing a blacklist for internet websites with “harmful” content. Critics said the laws could be used to limit freedom of expression.
