Department of Foreign Affairs expresses regret that Norwegian editor was refused entry to Russia

Russian flagRussian flag.Photo:Pixabay

The Foreign Ministry (Utenriksdepartementet – UD) will take it up the issue of an entry ban imposed on editor Thomas Nielsen with Russian authorities.
The editor of The Independent Barents Observer was denied entry to Russia on Wednesday this week after being placed on a list of people who are undesirable in Russia.

’It is regrettable that editor Thomas Nilsen was refused entry to Russia. We believe that it is in both Norwegian and Russian interests that as far as possible, there should be cross-border cooperation in the northern regions.

Good media coverage, and knowledge of conditions in the other countries in the Barents Region plays an important role’, said Frode Overland Andersen, the spokesman for the Foreign Ministry.

The Russian Embassy in Oslo confirmed on Friday that the reason Nilsen, a leading Norwegian journalist, has been placed on the list, is that in 2014, Norway joined the list of EU countries imposing sanctions against Russia.

‘From the Norwegian side, we believe it is both unreasonable, and unjustifiable, to use the EU’s restrictive measures as a basis for refusing Norwegian nationals entry into Russia. This has been clearly communicated to Russian authorities several times.

We will take note of Thomas Nilsen’s entry ban in our dealings with the Russian authorities’, said Andersen.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today