Russia Bars ABC Over Interview

Will Not Renew Accreditation For Network After Chechen Interview

(CBS/AP)  Russia's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday it will not renew permission for ABC-TV to operate in the country after the network broadcast an interview with a notorious Chechen warlord.

In a statement, the ministry said ABC would be considered "undesirable" by all Russian state agencies because of an interview with Shamil Basayev, which was broadcast last week on "Nightline."

The ministry called the broadcast a "clear fact supporting the propaganda of terrorism" and said it "resounded with direct calls for violence against Russian citizens."

"Today, I have given the order to the head of the press service that not one serviceman of the Defense Ministry should have contact with the American television channel ABC," Ivanov said Sunday on state television, according to a Moscow Times editorial. "We will continue to act openly with the press, but this channel will not be invited to the Defense Ministry and no interviews will ever be given to it."

The Foreign Ministry is the main government agency authorizing foreign media outlets to work in Russia, and the decision effectively now bars ABC from working here.

ABC News President David Westin said he was hopeful the Russian government would reconsider its decision but defended the network's reporting.

"The Russian people have suffered greatly at the hands of Chechen terrorists. No civilized people can condone the murder of innocent civilians," he said in a statement.

"The mission of a free press is to cover news events — even those involving illegal acts — to help our audience better understand the important issues that confront us all. ABC News deeply regrets the action taken by the Russian government ... but we cannot allow any government to deter us from reporting the news fully and accurately."

In Washington, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said any decision that limited ABC's operations in Russia would be regrettable.