Russia vows 'stringent measures' on US journalists, response to 'hostile' treatment of Russia media

The Foreign Ministry of Russia said Friday it has summoned the leaders of U.S. media outlets in Moscow to a meeting next week to notify them about the tough measures being placed on their outlets in response to their country's restrictions on Russian media.

"If the work of the Russian media – operators and journalists – is not normalized in the United States, the most stringent measures will inevitably follow," said a Ministry spokeswoman, according to Reuters.

"To this end, on Monday, June 6, the heads of the Moscow offices of all American media will be invited to the press centre of the Russian Foreign Ministry to explain to them the consequences of their government's hostile line in the media sphere. We look forward to it," the spokeswoman also said.

Russia has accused Western nations of implementing unfair restrictions against its media, including bans on several state-backed outlets. Last month, Russian lawmakers passed a measure giving prosecutors the ability to shut down foreign media bureaus in Moscow if a Western nation has been "unfriendly" to Russian media.

Since its invasion of Ukraine in late February, Russia has cracked down on media coverage of the war.

Journalists who spread what they are calling intentionally false news about its "special military operation" in Ukraine are subject to 15 year prison sentences. The introduction of the measure has meant that some Western media outlets have made the decision to pull their journalists out of Russia, the wire service also reports.