DW welcomed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's statement that he does not agree with restrictions against Western media outlets, including DW.

According to the Russian news agency Interfax, Lavrov made the announcement at a press conference of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Moscow.

"The Foreign Ministry does not support the consideration of any policy that aims to strip media of their accreditation," Lavrov said. He was answering a question on whether he believed it was necessary to suspend the accreditation of foreign media, including DW.

Read more: Journalism in international law – protected or defenseless?

DW spokesman Christoph Jumpelt said on Wednesday in response: "There would have been no possible justification for imposing sanctions against DW."

A spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry implied there had been reports in Russian media of a meeting between DW and the Russian Foreign Ministry in which DW allegedly apologized for its reporting on Russia.

This is not the case.  "We would like to make the following clear: There was no meeting," Jumpelt said. "Additionally, there is no reason for DW to apologize for the objective journalistic work of its correspondents and editors."

On Thursday, representatives of DW, including Director General Peter Limbourg, and members of the Duma, including Petr Tolstoi und Wassili Piskarev, met in Moscow for informal discussions. Representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry and the German ambassador were also present. The parties hope to continue talks at a future date in Berlin.

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