Russia has thrown out the United States Agency for International Development, the U.S. State Department said, claiming that the aid agency has undermined Russia's sovereignty. "We have recently received a decision of the Russian Government to end USAID activities there," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said this week. "The United States is extremely proud of what USAID has accomplished in Russia over the last 20 years, and we will work with our partners and staff to responsibly end or transition those programs." At APEC Russia and the U.S. look east Senior Russian officials have said that some of the agency's programs, such as some human rights groups and election monitoring, have undermined Russia's sovereignty, according to the state news agency RIA Novosti.
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The State Department says itis "extremely proud" of the work USAID did in Russia
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Russia says it was undermined by the U.S. Agency for International Development
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USAID had worked in Russia for two decades
Nuland, speaking at a State Department briefing Wednesday, argued that @placeholder officials "completely reject the notion that our support for civil society, democracy, human rights, in any way interferes with elections whether in Russia or anywhere else in the world."