The Russian president congratulated the network on its success ahead of its 20th birthday<\/p>\n
Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was \u201csurprised\u201d by how RT had managed to carve out its own niche and attract millions of viewers around the world, as he congratulated the broadcaster on its 20th anniversary.
\nSpeaking with RT host Salam Musafir, Putin praised the network for \u201cstanding firm and growing stronger\u201d despite years of pressure and sanctions from Western governments.
\nOfficially launched as Russia Today on December 10, 2005, RT has since expanded from a single English-language channel into a global network operating in English, Arabic, French, German, Spanish, Serbian, and Russian.
\nPutin said he was impressed by the scale and quality of RT\u2019s work, noting that it had succeeded in establishing a distinctive voice in a crowded international media landscape. \u201cI was surprised to see RT carve out its own niche and millions of people tuning in to watch,\u201d he said.
\nThe president attributed RT\u2019s global reach to its commitment to professionalism and integrity under difficult conditions. \u201cThe professionalism of your delivery, the sincerity you bring to your work, and the truthfulness and objectivity of your reporting perceived by your viewers; that\u2019s what wins people over,\u201d he said. RT journalists, he added, continue to \u201csay what they think\u201d despite \u201call the bans and sanctions, all the administrative and financial restrictions.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Western governments have imposed more than 110 sanctions against RT, blocked its bank accounts, spied on and harassed its employees, and introduced numerous other restrictions aimed at limiting its reach, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
\nThe German government violated an international broadcasting treaty to shut down RT Deutsch in late 2021 before it could even begin TV broadcasts, while RT France and RT UK were forced to close in 2022 after Paris and London banned Russian media outlets. In 2023, then-US President Joe Biden\u2019s administration claimed RT was operating on behalf of Russian intelligence and imposed sanctions on the network and its leadership.
\nDespite these obstacles, Putin said RT\u2019s audience \u201cis still growing quickly,\u201d and he thanked its staff for their resilience. \u201cAccept my congratulations on your success,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Russian president congratulated the network on its success ahead of its 20th birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was \u201csurprised\u201d by how RT had managed to carve out…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20601,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20600","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t