Moscow to retaliate US move against Russian media
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E-mail Xinhua, November 15, 2017
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday his government will take retaliatory measures if Russia's international news network RT America is forced to register as a foreign agent in the United States.
"If we talk about tit-for-tat (measures), it means adequate...The president has said that our reaction will be quick and mirror-like," the minister said.
On Monday, RT America registered as a foreign agent in the U.S. at the demand of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Lavrov said it will take a short period of time before Moscow takes action.
The State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, is scheduled on Wednesday to conduct the second and the third readings of an amendment to the Russian legislation that will "make it possible to recognize foreign media as performing the function of a foreign agent," Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Ivan Melnikov said Tuesday.
State Duma's Deputy Speaker Pyotr Tolstoy also said the draft bill is set to be approved by the Duma and submitted to the Federation Council, the upper house of parliament, for approval.
A draft normally has to be passed in three readings by the Duma, then get endorsed by the Federation Council before it can be signed into law by the Russian president.
For months Washington has been accusing Moscow of having interfered in the U.S. presidential election in 2016 and the latter has repeatedly denied the allegation. RT and Sputnik are among the organizations suspected of working on behalf of Moscow in its alleged support of then Republican Party candidate Donald Trump.
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