US threatening freedom of speech – ex-Greek envoy
The ban imposed on RT by US tech giant Meta is further proof that Washington and its allies will stop at nothing to silence independent media voices, Leonidas Chrysanthopoulos, a former Greek ambassador to Armenia and Poland, said on Tuesday.
The measures taken by Western governments and tech companies already resemble those made by the “extreme right” in the past, the diplomat warned in an interview with RT.
“We should not be surprised in Western Europe if we actually reach the stage of closing down independent media… as was happening during the Greek dictatorship or in the Nazi Germany,” added Chrysanthopoulos, who has also represented his nation at the UN General Assembly.
According to the former diplomat, what has happened to RT could be just the beginning, as some Greek media, including the “148-year-old newspaper Estia,” also face pressure from the authorities.
Chrysanthopoulos further claimed that Meta is using a “strategy” of lies to justify its targeting of RT. The US tech giant decided to outright ban the broadcaster this week, without the need to prove its position in court or present any evidence supporting its accusations against the outlet, the former ambassador said.
“Since they have taken the decision not to go to court, they can start saying any kind of lies to put down RT,” Chrysanthopoulos stated. “What they are saying is absolutely false.”
Such actions only show that “freedom of speech globally that is being threatened, particularly by the US,” he argued.
