The Prosecutor General’s Office declared Novaya Gazeta. Evropa undesirable

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Russia recognized the publication “Novaya Gazeta. Evropa” as a so-called undesirable organization. It was registered in Latvia by a group of Novaya Gazeta employees after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is not organizationally connected with the Russian “New Newspaper”. The publication under the leadership of Kirill Martynov takes an anti-war position.

The announcement of the Prosecutor General’s Office states that the organization “BDR Novaja Gazeta-Europe” was “founded by the Latvian journalist Kirill Martynov, who holds Russian citizenship”, and its activities “participate in former members of the editorial staff of the publication “Novaya Gazeta”, whose registration certificates were “cancelled print and electronic mass media”. “The main topics of the publications include false information about alleged mass violations of the rights and freedoms of citizens in Russia, accusations of our country in launching an aggressive war in Ukraine, committing war crimes against the civilian population, repressions,” the Prosecutor General’s Office reports. Another point in the justification of the decision is that “Novaya Gazeta. Evropa” distributes materials of organizations recognized as extremist (FBK, Navalny’s headquarters) and other “undesirable organizations”. All this, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office, “represents a threat to the foundations of the constitutional system of the Russian Federation, the security of the state.”

• Previously, the work of a number of other mass media, including “Meduza” based in Latvia, as well as “Proekta” and The Insider, was considered undesirable in Russia.
• The register of undesirable organizations appeared in the Russian legislation in 2012. It includes legal entities whose work the state authorities declare dangerous for Russia. The legislation provides for criminal liability for cooperation with such organizations. There are already about 100 of them in the register.