Luke Daniel Harding the 42 year old UK political journalist who had initially been refused entry into Russia, has been the subject of a brilliant article written with an interesting perspective by Edward Lucas. Harding in February 2011 became the first foreign journalist to be expelled from Russia since the end of the Cold War. Harding’s employer the Guardian linked his expulsion with his unflattering coverage of Russia and the Kremlin. Russia reversed the decision to expel him but granted only a short term visa. Harding did not further renew his visa and returned to the UK, alleging harassment during his Russian return, claiming the Federal Security Service were unhappy at the stories he wrote. Elsa Vidal of the media freedom watchdog, stated: “unprecedented since the Cold War … It’s an attempt to force correspondents working for foreign media in Moscow to engage in self-censorship.”

 

Inspired by Edward Lucas http://ow.ly/7deBo image source misterdann.com http://ow.ly/7dfmJ