Russia to probe ‘foreign meddling’ after protests
Russia has decided to investigate "foreign meddling" in the country's affairs, following recent protests that Moscow accuses Western governments and media of supporting.
A committee will investigate reports by foreign media as well as "embassies which distributed information" about the demonstrations, Russia’s lower house of parliament speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said on Monday.
On August 3, demonstrators gathered in Moscow as a sign of protest to the government’s decision to disqualify a number of opposition candidates from standing in local elections.
Russia summoned a representative of the US embassy to lodge a formal protest against Washington's interference in the country's internal affairs, following a controversial move by the US embassy to support the unauthorized rally in the Russian capital.
The US embassy in Moscow published a map on social media showing the proposed route of the march.
Moscow says the "demonstration alert" it sent with details of the protest amounted to "an attempt to intervene" in Russian affairs.
The government's internet watchdog has also accused Google of "advertising unsanctioned mass actions" on YouTube.
The US has already come under fire for meddling in the internal affairs of China by triggering and encouraging anti-government protests in Hong Kong.
A recent report uncovered a photograph of a US diplomat meeting with members of the Hong Kong political party, Demosist, in the Chinese city.
Russia and the US have already been engaged in tensions; the most recent of which sparked after the US formally terminated a Cold War-era treaty with Russia that had banned nuclear-capable missiles with ranges of 500-5,500 kilometers.
The withdrawal followed accusations by the US administration that Moscow had violated the treaty by deploying a new type of cruise missile, a charge Russia denies.
The US already planned to start testing a new class of missiles later this summer.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, warned that Moscow will be forced to begin developing short- and intermediate-range land-based nuclear missiles if Washington starts doing so.
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