Russia adds World Wildlife Fund to list of ‘undesirable’ organizations

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - The Russian Attorney General's Office announced Wednesday that the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) was added to the list of "undesirable" organizations.

The Office’s press service said the decision was made as investigators found the WWF has been used "to implement projects that pose threats to Russia's security in the economic sphere."

"Based on the results of the inspection, the Attorney General's Office of Russia decided to recognize the activities of the international non-governmental organization World Wild Fund for Nature (World Wildlife Fund, WWF, Switzerland) as undesirable on the territory of the Russian Federation.

"The so-called 'environmental' and 'eco-educational' activities under the leadership of a British citizen Neville Isdell are used by the WWF as a cover for the implementation of projects that pose threats to the security of the Russian Federation in the economic sphere," it said.

The foundation formed a network of environmental non-profit organizations to collect data on the environmental situation in Russian regions to prepare "biased assessments" aimed at "constraining the economic development of Russia," according to the Attorney General's Office.

Undesirable organizations are prohibited from operating in Russia and face administrative and criminal liability in case of violations.

The Office also put on the list in May another eco-activist group, Greenpeace, for funding activities of "foreign agent organizations" in Russia and "promoting anti-Russian propaganda."