There is no reason to recognize the Yeltsin Center as a foreign agent. This was told to Russian media by its press service, commenting on the words of Deputy Justice Minister Oleg Sviridenko about checking the center for the activities of a foreign agent.
“The Yeltsin Center reacted calmly to media reports about Deputy Justice Minister Oleg Sviridenko. All our activities – both substantial and financial – are carried out in strict compliance with Federal Law 68 “On Centers of Historical Heritage of Presidents of the Russian Federation” and our charter,” the press service said.
Representatives of the Yeltsin Center stress that all of the organization’s financial statements are “absolutely transparent” and are published on its website. The Center reports annually on its activities, including financial ones, to the board of directors, the press service said.
“We are sure that the inspection of the Ministry of Justice will confirm: there is no reason to declare the Yeltsin Center a foreign agent, and there cannot be,” the press service concluded.
Earlier, State Duma deputy Andrei Alshevsky asked Sviridenko at a meeting of the commission to investigate the facts of foreign interference whether the Ministry of Justice could carry out a full audit in order to put an end to “once and for all” to disputes over whether the Yeltsin Center performs the functions of a foreign agent.
“Now, if there are violations, they must be published. And if there are no violations, then they must always know and fully understand that there are no violations,” said Alshevskikh.
In response, Sviridenko said that a “thorough check” of the Yeltsin Center had already begun at the request of one of the deputies. The Deputy Minister does not remember which of the parliamentarians sent the request.
What is the “Yeltsin Center”
The Boris Yeltsin Presidential Center (“Yeltsin Center”) is a public, cultural and educational center. Opened in Yekaterinburg in 2015. According to to place organizations, the main task of the Yeltsin Center is to preserve, study and understand the historical legacy of the first President of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, in the context of the political and social events of the 1990s. The Yeltsin Center hosts exhibitions , film screenings, conferences, concerts, festivals and other events.
The board of directors of the Yeltsin Center, in particular, includes the widow of the first president Naina Yeltsin, his daughter Tatyana Yumasheva, the governor of the Sverdlovsk region Yevgeny Kuyvashev, the mayor of Yekaterinburg Alexei Orlov, the Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu, head of the presidential administration Anton Vaino.
After the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, the Yeltsin Center published a letter on its website calling for an end to hostilities. It was subsequently deleted. The center said the post was taken down at the request of law enforcement.
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