28/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - Paris calls for explanation on the NGO investigations. On 27 March, France asked the Russian ambassador in Paris to provide an explanation for the ongoing investigations focusing on a series of organisations, foundations and establishments - among which are several Alliance Française offices (see EUROPE 10815) - while stating that this is not a properly communicated summons but a request. The French Socialist Party - the party of French President François Hollande - has strongly condemned the measures put in place against the NGOs, describing them as “undemocratic and unacceptable” and calling on the Russian authorities to return to practices that are more in accordance with the respect for human rights and freedom of assembly. (CG/transl.fl)