MOSCOW. July 3 (Interfax) - The Russian Justice Ministry has proposed to grant additional powers to government agencies controlling NGO activity for better detection of 'foreign agents' financing political opposition forces in Russia.
"There are organizations in our country which are carefully concealing their true goals, for instance, by alleged disengagement from political activity on the Russian territory," Russian First Deputy Justice Minister Sergei Gerasimov said at a meeting of the Federation Council dedicated to NGO activity on Friday.
He said such entities were accumulating efforts of foreign institutions and actively financing organizations involved in political activity. "Definitely [this activity] does not support the Russian state," the Justice Ministry official noted.
"Indeed, this is an impediment, which may become a subject of consideration of measures regarding powers of relevant bodies operating in this field," he opined.