Russia says cultural work in Germany continues remotely after closures

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russia was seeking new forms of cultural and humanitarian engagement after its Berlin cultural centre and Bonn consulate closed.

Speaking at the Catherine Forum on October 13, Zakharova said the work had continued after the Russian institutions closed in September. It was now being conducted remotely. She did not specify what forms of engagement would be introduced next.

Zakharova said audiences remained interested in Russian cultural activities. Her claims of growing demand and pressure from German authorities were not accompanied by quantitative evidence. Interfax independently reported her account of the move to remote work.

According to Interfax, Germany demanded the closures after a drone incident at Leipzig airport that German authorities attributed to Russia. That attribution was the German government's position. Russia subsequently stopped the work of Germany's consulate general in St Petersburg and Goethe cultural centres in Russia.

The third international Catherine Forum is being held at the National Centre Russia. Organisers report more than 1 300 participants from 55 countries.