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Russia’s Prosecutor-General on Wednesday declared the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), also known as the World Wildlife Fund, “undesirable.” Moscow accused the Switzerland-based nonprofit of working on behalf of the US against Russia’s economic and security interests, especially in the Arctic.
The Prosecutor-General’s Office said that the WWF used environmental and educational activities “as a cover for implementing projects that pose security threats in the economic sphere.”
Specifically, “under the pretext of preserving the environment, the WWF is carrying out activities aimed at preventing the implementation of (Russia’s) policies for the industrial development and exploration of natural resources in the Arctic territories, while developing and legitimizing restrictions that could serve as a basis for transferring the Northern Sea Route into the exclusive economic zone of the US.”
The NGO is especially targeting large enterprises engaged in the energy sector, the oil and gas industry, and also the mining of mineral deposits and precious metals, according to Russian officials. The Prosecutor-General’s Office in particular objected to the WWF’s use of the ESG (Environmental/Social/Governance) scores to rate Russian companies, which are based solely on the “subjective standards and criteria developed by the WWF.”
The WWF has provided material and other support for several Russian NGOs that have been included in the registry of foreign agents, such as ‘Friends of the Baltic’ and the ‘Sakhalin Environmental Watch’. The Russian Ministry of Justice declared the WWF itself a foreign agent in March this year.
Being declared undesirable is an effective ban on the organization. It must shut down its offices in Russia, and doing business with it is punishable with a fine or jail in case of repeat offenders. The first organization to be designated so was the US Congress-funded National Endowment for Democracy (NED), in 2015.
Another environmentalist NGO, Greenpeace, was declared unwelcome last month after allegations it had sought destabilization and change of government in Russia “through unconstitutional means.”
The global organization, which promotes wildlife preservation and works to reduce human impact on the environment, encourages activities that are “a cover for the implementation of projects that pose security threats in the economic sphere,” the Russian prosecutor-general's office said, according to Russian news reports
“Under the pretext of preserving the environment, WWF is carrying out activities aimed at preventing the implementation of the country’s political course for the industrial development of the Arctic, natural resources in the Arctic territories,” it said.
Last month, the environmental pressure group Greenpeace was forced to close its Russian division after Moscow declared it to be an undesirable organization.
In recent years, Russia has methodically targeted people and organizations critical of the Kremlin, branding many as “foreign agents”, declaring some as “undesirable” and prosecuting those found to have discredited the military's war in Ukraine.
Now the work of environmentalists in Russia has finally been made impossible. Accounts are blocked, buying or renting real estate is prohibited. All offices must be closed. No more members may be recruited, no information material distributed and certainly no protest actions may be carried out. In May, prosecutors banned Greenpeace’s work in Russia. WWF has worked in Russia to protect and preserve the habitats of endangered animal species. These include Amur tigers, polar bears, snow leopards and many other species. According to WWF Russia, the main goal is to preserve biodiversity on earth.
The Global Echo website makes an opinion claim that :
WWF has been working in Russia to protect and preserve the habitat of endangered animal species. These include the Amur tiger, polar bear, snow leopard and many other species. According to WWF Russia, the main goal is to preserve the biodiversity of the earth.
According to its own information, the decades-long work of the WWF in Russia was supported by 1.5 million people. In the past, Russian President Putin liked to pose as an animal rights activist. When planning the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, there was even a short phase of cooperation: the WWF was supposed to act in an advisory capacity, but quickly withdrew because all suggestions had been ignored, it was said.
Of course, Vladimir Putin did this, because he thought that WWF's goal was purely for preservation, before WWF's guise was uncovered.
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