Russia announced on Thursday the imminent closure of the Goethe Institute in its territory, as retaliation for a similar measure adopted by Germany against the Russian cultural center in Berlin. The information was confirmed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Lavrov declared during a conference at the XI Eastern Economic Forum that the branches of the Goethe Institute in Russia will be closed. The institute has branches in three Russian cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Yekaterinburg.
The Russian measure is a direct response to Germany's decision to close the Russian cultural center in Berlin, generating a new diplomatic conflict between the two countries in the cultural sphere.
The closure directly affects the cultural activities and German language teaching that were carried out by the Goethe Institute in the three Russian cities where it operated.
