(MENAFN- AzerNews) By News Centre
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that foreign
reporters have nothing to fear if they are performing their stated
duties and do not use their accreditation as a cover.
The comments came at a news conference in Moscow after the
arrest Thursday of Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan
Gershkovich who Peskov said was caught red-handed while violating
the country's laws.
Peskov said“there is no reason” to expel all Russian
journalists from Western countries in response to Gershkovich's
arrest.“One thing is the violation of the law and going beyond
activities, stipulated by legislation. Another -- to restrict the
rights of fair journalists. It would be absurd and wrong."
"All foreign journalists who have valid accreditation can and
continue their journalistic activities in our country. They do not
face any restrictions and work calmly. But in this case, we are
talking about activities under the cover of journalistic
espionage," he said.
Peskov said he had no details about Gershkovich's affairs but an
investigation is being carried out by the Federal Security
Service.
Turning to an initiative on sending "troops of peacekeeper kind"
to Ukraine -- which is according to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor
Orban, being considered by the EU -- Peskov said it would demand an
agreement from both sides and "potentially it is a very dangerous
matter."
"This is a statement that is very important to pay attention to.
If we are talking about serious spill, then, of course, this is a
potentially extremely dangerous discussion," he said.
Commenting on a petition published on the website of Ukraine's
president, proposing that the US deploy nuclear weapons in his
country, Peskov said "not all petitions, published there (on the
presidential website) demand serious attention."
On Thursday, a petition was published on Volodymyr Zelenskyy's
website with a proposal to deploy US nuclear weapons in Ukraine or
make Ukraine a state with nuclear weapons. If 25,000 people sign in
90 days, the president will have to consider it and give his
answer.
Regarding Chinese and Belarusian peace initiatives concerning
Ukraine, Peskov said they cannot be implemented due to Ukrainian
legislation that stipulates peace talks with Russia is a criminal
offense.
Asked about charges against former US President Donald Trump,
Peskov: "I don't think this is a topic for any of our comments,
these are intra-American processes that we do not consider
necessary to comment on in any way."
A grand jury indicted Trump on Thursday on charges related to a
"hush money" payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
The indictment marks the first time in US history that a current
or former president has faced criminal charges.
Trump has long raged against the impending legal action and
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who presented evidence to
a grand jury.
He has denied any wrongdoing and maintained the case is
politically-motivated.
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