The item RIA Novosti's readers opened on Monday was a foreign magazine agreeing with Moscow. The agency reported that the Italian outlet L'antidiplomatico had written that remarks by Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, showed resolve, and that they were the forerunner of a global response Russia would carry out.
The remarks being praised had come earlier. Commenting on Vladimir Putin's line that Russia would answer in kind any attempt to seize its merchant vessels, Medvedev said Moscow was entitled to attack any ship belonging to hostile states where there was sufficient suspicion that it was carrying cargo in Kyiv's interest.
The week before, the commander of the Pacific Fleet had reported to the president that his forces were ready to begin inspecting and detaining shadow-fleet vessels belonging to unfriendly Western states.
We have not seen the L'antidiplomatico piece and cannot confirm how it reads in full or in what context the line appears. What is on the record here is that RIA carried it, and that Russian readers went to it.
Why it is on the board
It was among the most-read items on RIA Novosti. Two of the three Russian pieces we are showing today are of the same shape — not a report of an event but a report of what someone said about Russia. That is itself the finding: the most-opened Russian items on Monday were commentary, not incident.
확인: РИА Новости