MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, the European Parliament voted in favor of a resolution on countering Russian media outlets, such as the Sputnik news agency and the RT broadcaster.
“This resolution certainly demonstrates that the EU is no friend of free speech and is out of touch with the shifting paradigm across the Atlantic in the United States,” Daniel McAdams said.
According to McAdams, if Donald Trump as the incoming US president will continue moving towards improving relations with Moscow, the European Union will “face a dilemma over whether to break with the US to keep up its militant line or to shift toward the emerging position in Washington.”
As many as 304 voted in favor the document, 179 voted against and 208 abstained. With a total of 691 officials taking part in the vote, less than half supported the resolution, which draws parallel between Russian media and the propaganda disseminated by the Islamic State, a jihadist group outlawed in Russia.
Sputnik responded by calling the move a direct violation of media freedom and human rights, while Russian President Vladimir Putin commented on the matter by pointing out that the document indicates a degradation of democracy in the West. Praising Sputnik and RT for their work, the president expressed hope that real media restrictions would not follow.
