“Unfortunately, Russia was not allowed to participate in this year's event.
The UNESCO Secretariat, on behalf of the organizers of the forum, under a far-fetched pretext, rejected Russian applications for holding a special session on the influence of large IT companies on the work of the media, as well as for expert speeches in panel discussions,” the agency said in a statement.
The Russian Foreign Ministry noted that the organizations motivated the refusal by non-compliance with the requirements of the event, however, the proposals of the Russian side were sent on time and fit into the main topic of the event.
“Obviously, the UNESCO Secretariat followed the lead of a group of well-known, highly biased countries that are promoting the policy of “cancelling” Russia in the international arena,” the agency added.
Earlier it was reported that Google blocked the account of the Duma TV channel on YouTube.
Later, YouTube video hosting blocked the channel of the branch of the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company in Chechnya, the Vainakh State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.
The day before, Google announced that it was blocking YouTube channels related to RT and Sputnik in Europe.