Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova urged to stop naming the supporters of the founder of the Anti-Corruption Fund (FBK, included by the Ministry of Justice in the register of organizations performing the functions of a foreign agent), Alexei Navalny, the opposition, and instead decided to describe them differently. RIA Novosti reports.
In her opinion, these are agents of influence, and “NATO members instruct them about the format of the rallies.” “The fact is that, as you remember, on February 4 [head of Navalny’s network of regional headquarters Leonid] Volkov said that they would no longer hold protests in winter and would continue these actions in spring and summer. What do you think, this morning was exactly the opposite is stated: that these actions will continue in February, “Zakharova said. She also noted that on February 8 in Brussels, Volkov held an online meeting with the EU member states, as well as the United States and Great Britain.
“So they met yesterday with NATO members, received instructions for the full program. I think they just clearly explained that there is no need to wait for spring or summer and that the situation needs to be continued to rock,” concluded Zakharova.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the German special services may be involved in the preparation of Navalny’s film. The minister recalled that in the film, the founder of the FBK visits the building of the former residence of Soviet intelligence in Dresden and shows materials related to Vladimir Putin’s service in the GDR. “It is clear that it is impossible to get into this building, and even more so to gain access to certain archives, without cooperation with the official authorities of the Federal Republic of Germany, most likely with their special services,” Lavrov said.
On Friday, February 5, Russia announced the expulsion of three foreign diplomats for participating in unauthorized rallies in support of Alexei Navalny. Diplomats from Poland, Sweden and Germany were summoned to the ministry. They were protesting over their participation in unauthorized actions on January 23.