Latvia bans broadcast of Russian channel RTR-Planeta
The rebroadcasting and distribution of Russian channel RTR-Planeta’s programs have been banned in Latvia. This decision was made by the National Electronic Media Council (NEPLP) on April 7th.
"Any ban is an indication of weakness," said Petr Fedorov, head of the International Relations Directorate at VGTRK. According to him, a national regulator "attempts to force VGTRK to censure their programs."
At the end of March, Sputnik Latvia lost the right to use the domain .lv for its online portal as it was found in violation of the EU Council Regulations concerning restrictive measures regarding to the threat posed to Ukrainian territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence.
In the spring of 2014, Latvia imposed a three-month ban on the rebroadcasting of the RTR-Planeta channel. At the time the decision was based on the fact that RTR "does not provide accurate and balanced information and that there are elements of propaganda in its messages."