Russia expels USAID for political interference
20 Sep 2012 2:35 AM GMT
Russia today ordered the USAID to halt its activities in the country by October 1 accusing the American aid mission of meddling in its domestic politics, including trying to influence the outcome of polls.
The activities of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) ‘must be halted from October 1’, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, a day after the US has said it would close its pro-democracy work in Russia following an order by the Russian government.
‘The decision was taken mainly because the work of the agency’s officials far from always responded to the stated goals of development and humanitarian cooperation,’ said the statement.
‘We are talking about attempts to influence political processes through its distribution of grants,’ it said.
In Washington, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the US recently ‘received the Russian government's decision to end USAID activities in the Russian Federation.’
While USAID's physical presence in Russia will come to an end, she said the US remains committed to supporting democracy, human rights, and the development of a ‘more robust’ civil society in ussia and look forward to continuing its cooperation with Russian non-governmental organisations.
The Russian decision, communicated to the US on 12 September and released to the press yesterday, was termed as insult by Republican Senator John McCain.
‘The Russian government's decision to end all USAID activities in the country is an insult to the US and a finger in the eye of the Obama Administration, which has consistently trumpeted the alleged success of its so-called “reset” policy towards Moscow,’ McCain said. Claiming that the decision was driven by Russia's ‘autocratic’ approach, McCain alleged Moscow wants to ‘limit’ the ability of its own citizens to freely and willingly work with American partners on the promotion of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Russia.
The activities of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) ‘must be halted from October 1’, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, a day after the US has said it would close its pro-democracy work in Russia following an order by the Russian government.
‘The decision was taken mainly because the work of the agency’s officials far from always responded to the stated goals of development and humanitarian cooperation,’ said the statement.
‘We are talking about attempts to influence political processes through its distribution of grants,’ it said.
In Washington, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the US recently ‘received the Russian government's decision to end USAID activities in the Russian Federation.’
While USAID's physical presence in Russia will come to an end, she said the US remains committed to supporting democracy, human rights, and the development of a ‘more robust’ civil society in ussia and look forward to continuing its cooperation with Russian non-governmental organisations.
The Russian decision, communicated to the US on 12 September and released to the press yesterday, was termed as insult by Republican Senator John McCain.
‘The Russian government's decision to end all USAID activities in the country is an insult to the US and a finger in the eye of the Obama Administration, which has consistently trumpeted the alleged success of its so-called “reset” policy towards Moscow,’ McCain said. Claiming that the decision was driven by Russia's ‘autocratic’ approach, McCain alleged Moscow wants to ‘limit’ the ability of its own citizens to freely and willingly work with American partners on the promotion of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Russia.
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