The New Times correspondent Natalya Morar, a Moldova native, arrived in Moscow on a flight from Chisinau on Monday and was allowed to pass through the immigration checkpoint.
"We simply bought tickets, calmly went through passport control, sat on the plane, and now we are in Moscow and heading to the office," Morar's husband and The New Times editor Ilya Barabanov told Gazeta.ru. Barabanov said no press conferences or other events were planned.
Morar was denied entry at Domodedovo airport in December 2007 after returning from a trip to Israel. She was told she was on an FSB list prohibiting her entrance to the country under a law providing for the ban of foreigners that pose a threat to the health and safety of Russians.
Morar said she was certain the refusal was connected to an article she wrote alleging the presidential administration had a huge cash fund from which it funded and controlled most of the parties that participated in the December 2007 State Duma elections and naming then-Kremlin chief of staff Sergei Sobyanin and his deputy Vladislav Surkov as the people in control of the money.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
