Correspondent for British News Agency The Guardian Expelled from Russia
Luke Harding, British journalist, was sent back to London just moments after his plane landed in Russia. The Russian government says the journalist has been given a new entry visa to Russia.
Online, March 16, 2011 (Newswire.com) - It was reported that the Moscow correspondent for The Guardian, Luke Harding, was refused entry at passport control in Moscow. His visa was annulled on the spot and he was put on a plane to go back to Britain soon after. According to the report released by Russia's Interfax News Agency, the British journalist has been issued a new Russian entry visa on the eve of Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's two-day visit to London for the purpose of strengthening ties between the two nations.
An unnamed official at the Russian embassy in London said, "A visa for Mr Harding was issued on Friday." The spokesperson of the embassy, Oleg Sepelyov, could not confirm or deny the report, while both Harding and his news organization, The Guardian were not available to comment on the matter at the time.
Harding was informed back in November that when his media accreditation expired at the end of the month it would not be renewed and he would need to leave. When he tried to re-enter the country on February 5th, The Guardian reported that security officials told him "Russia is closed for you", and he was not instructed that he would need to leave the country immediately.
Dean N. Orbell, of Travel Document Systems, Inc. (TDS), a Washington D.C. based Passport and visa processing agency said "The importance of having the correct documentation when traveling internationally should not be overlooked. When tensions are high between two nations, it doesn't take much for situations like this to arise."
Lavrov traveled to London to meet with Prime Minister David Cameron and Foreign Secretary William Hague on his first trip to Britain. Harding's incident is the latest among the series of episodes displaying tense relations between the two countries. This is rooted in the 2006 killing of Kremlin critic and ex-security officer Alexander Litvinenko in London with a rare radioactive isotope.
Russia has stringent mandates for tourists and other visitors, and Lavrov reported that Harding violated accreditation rules but an agreement was reached that would allow him to continue his work until May, though the new media card reportedly provided by the Russian government when Harding returned to Russia on Saturday is said to expire Tuesday, May 31st.
"It is still not clear whether Luke is being allowed in indefinitely or is still being expelled in 15 weeks' time. The Guardian is seeking urgent clarification on this," the newspaper said in a statement after Harding returned to work in Moscow.