Russia rebukes US diplomat over publication about unauthorized Moscow rally

MOSCOW, Aug 9, 2019, TASS. Russia’s Foreign Ministry has officially reprimanded Minister-Counselor of the US Embassy in Moscow Tim Richardson over a publication on the diplomatic mission’s website about the unauthorized August 3 rally in Moscow, reported the TASS.

“On August 9, the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Minister-Counselor of the US Embassy in Moscow Tim Richardson. He was reprimanded in connection with publishing information about an unauthorized rally in Moscow on August 3 on the official account of the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs on the Twitter social network and on the diplomatic mission’s website,” the ministry said.

The ministry emphasized that it viewed “the publication of the protest route, drawn up by the organizers of the unauthorized event, as agitation towards participating in it and an appeal for action, which represents an attempt at meddling in our country’s domestic affairs.”

According to police, about 600 people were detained in Moscow for participating in the unauthorized August 3 demonstration, which involved about 1,500. Ahead of the illegal protest, the authorities had issued warnings saying that any violation of the law would lead to culpability. Police warned about the risks of different provocations at the unauthorized rally and called on Muscovites and out-of-towners to refrain from joining it.