Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson could face sanctions over his interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin, EU lawmakers have warned.
The Kremlin confirmed Putin had been interviewed by Carlson on Wednesday, making it the first interview the president has given to a Western journalist since his full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago.
But the interview could see him targeted by European Union lawmakers, current and former members of the European Parliament told Newsweek.
Former Belgian Prime Minister and member of the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt has said Carlson’s work in Russia could put him in hot water with the EU.
Why I'm interviewing Vladimir Putin. pic.twitter.com/hqvXUZqvHX
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) February 6, 2024
He told Newsweek Carlson was “a mouthpiece” of former US president Donald Trump and Putin, adding: “As Putin is a war criminal and the EU sanctions all who assist him in that effort, it seems logical that the External Action Service examine his case as well."
The EU's External Action Service (EAS) is the bloc's diplomatic arm, responsible for foreign policy.
MEP Urmas Paet has highlighted how Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and accused of genocide and war crimes.
He said: “Carlson wants to give a platform to someone accused of crimes of genocide—this is wrong.
“If Putin has something to say he needs to say it in front of the ICC. At the same time Carlson is not being a real journalist since he has clearly expressed his sympathy for the Russian regime and Putin and has constantly disparaged Ukraine, the victim of Russian aggression.
"So, for such propaganda for a criminal regime, you can end up on the list of sanctions. This concerns primarily travel ban to EU countries."
Former MEP Luis Garicano added: "He is no longer a newsman, but a propagandist for the most heinous regime on European soil and the one which is most dangerous to our peace and security."
Carlson released a video from Moscow on Tuesday in which he said he would be interviewing Putin.
In the clip, he claimed that Western journalists had interviewed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy multiple times but could not be "bothered" to interview the Russian president.
Putin's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that Carlson was chosen for the interview because "he has a position which differs" from other English-language media.
Peskov also rejected Carlson's suggestion that no Western journalists had submitted requests to interview Putin. He said the Kremlin has received many requests from large Western television channels and newspapers which, he asserted, "take a one-sided position."
Carlson's position, Peskov said, "is in no way pro-Russian, nor pro-Ukrainian, but rather pro-American."
The interview with Putin will be distributed for free on his website and on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Carlson who was fired by Fox News in April, announced he was starting his own streaming service in December.
Putin has heavily limited his contact with international media since he launched the war in Ukraine in February 2022.
Russian authorities have cracked down on media, forcing some independent Russian outlets to close, blocking others and ordering a number of foreign reporters to leave the country.
Two journalists working for US news organizations — The Wall Street Journal's Evan Gershkovich and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Alsu Kurmasheva — are in jail on charges they reject.
