Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office on Monday designated the Geneva-based International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) as “undesirable,” accusing it of promoting Western values and spreading anti-Russian propaganda.
“The NGO’s goal is to shape Russian youth according to Western templates,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “Its teaching boils down to imposing its own interpretation of historical processes, distorting well-known facts, spreading anti-Russian propaganda and fomenting interethnic discord.”
Founded in 1968, IBO administers academic programs for students ages 3 to 19 that emphasize critical thinking and intercultural understanding, according to its website. The programs are offered at around 5,000 schools and universities across 151 countries.
IBO licensed its programs to dozens of state and private schools in Russia, including the International Gymnasium of the Skolkovo Innovation Center outside Moscow. The organization previously condemned Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, pledging to support students and educators affected by the war.
The prosecutor’s office claimed IBO has “adjusted” its curriculum since the invasion to reflect the “Russophobic stance of the collective West,” including alleged calls for isolating Russia internationally and “content discrediting the Russian army.” It also accused IBO representatives of promoting “non-traditional values based on the ideology of banned extremist organizations.”
Under Russian law, affiliation with an “undesirable” organization carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison, while leaders can face up to six years.
Russia introduced its “undesirable” law in 2015, using it to crack down on independent media, opposition groups and foreign organizations. Hundreds of organizations are now blacklisted, including The Moscow Times, which was blacklisted last summer.
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