Russia Targets German Journalist over Zelensky Question

A Moscow court has issued an arrest warrant for a correspondent for the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) on charges of inciting hatred or hostility. The Russian Interior Ministry placed him on its wanted list last week. If convicted, he faces up to six years in prison.

According to the DPA news agency, the Russian authorities acted after the journalist asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a question during his visit to Belgrade just over two weeks ago. He asked what Europeans could do to help Ukraine “kill more Russians — more Russian soldiers, of course”.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described the question as an unacceptable and criminal call to kill Russians.

FAZ subsequently acknowledged that the question had been misleadingly worded and expressed regret over the wording. It remains unclear whether Serbia, one of the journalist’s working regions, will comply with Moscow’s warrant request.

(max)