MOSCOW, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday it had summoned Minister-Counsellor of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Tim Richardson, and presented him with an official protest against the U.S. encouraging an unauthorized opposition rally.
U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs on Aug. 2 issued a travel warning on Twitter, showing the routes of the unauthorized demonstration scheduled in downtown Moscow a day later. The website of the U.S. Embassy in Russia also published the map of the route and reminded U.S. citizens to avoid certain areas.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that posting the route is "an act encouraging participation and a call to action, which constitutes an attempt to interfere in Russia's domestic affairs."
The ministry also protested against a comment on Twitter by the U.S. Embassy's spokesperson Andrea Kalan, which criticized Russian authorities for "undermining the rights of citizens to participate fully in the democratic process."
Police detained over 1,600 participants in two protests on July 27 and Aug. 3 against Moscow's decision to ban several opposition candidates, who allegedly used fake signatures on their nominating petitions, from the city council election in September.
