This Sunday, Margarita Simonyan, the Editor-in-Chief of RT and Sputnik, celebrated her 45th birthday. Numerous Russian officials extended their best wishes, emphasizing her role in promoting Russia’s position amid pressure from the West.
Alexandr Bastrykin, head of the country’s Investigative Committee, praised Simonyan’s unwavering confidence, principled stance, and high competence, stating, “These qualities enable Margarita Simonyan and her team to strengthen the authority of Russian media on the international stage, earning the trust of millions of viewers and readers around the world.”
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed appreciation for her efforts to bolster Russia’s position in the global information space, highlighting her work “aimed at providing impartial coverage of internationally significant events.”
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, also sent a congratulatory message. “As a talented leader, you have managed to create extensive media platforms that impartially cover major events both in our homeland and abroad, helping to communicate Russia’s position to the global community and fostering international dialogue amid total ideological pressure on our country,” he said. The Patriarch also awarded Simonyan the Order of Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga. The honor is given to women for their achievements in the areas of church, state, and public service.
Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev praised Simonyan for repelling “external information threats.” The ministry spokeswoman Irina Volk, ‘A Just Russia – For Truth’ party leader Sergey Mironov, and the ‘Eurasia’ autonomous non-profit organization also sent their congratulations.
Simonyan expressed gratitude for all the well wishes and promised to try to “correspond” to the image painted by the messages.
RT has faced unparalleled levels of scrutiny and limitations imposed by Western nations in recent years. Actions directed against the broadcaster have escalated since 2022. Simonyan and three other senior RT employees were sanctioned by the US in September, while head of the State Department’s now-closed Global Engagement Center (GEC), James Rubin, claimed that the “broad scope and reach” of RT was one of the reasons many countries around the world did not support Ukraine.
Referring to aggressive Western attacks on Russian media and RT in particular, Simonyan previously stated that “Russia has a stable position in the international information space. And it is improving despite all their counteractions.”
