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COLUMN: Moscow Closes the Goethe-Instituts, and a German Class Is Cut Short
Maxime Marquette

Primary Sources:

Federal Foreign Office, statement by German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul at the joint press conference with Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt: closure of the Russian Consulate General in Bonn by September 18, termination of the contract regarding the Russian House in Berlin, new proposals for European sanctions, tighter entry controls, pressure on the “ghost fleet,” summoning of the Russian ambassador, September 1, 2026

Goethe-Institut Moscow, overview page: opening of the first institute in Russia on October 8, 1992; a network of three institutes, four cultural societies, eight cultural contact centers, sixteen reading rooms, eighteen language and examination centers, and sixty teaching materials centers; address: 15 Leningradsky Prospekt; accessed September 3, 2026

Goethe-Institut Russia, locations page: three locations—Moscow (15 Leningradsky Prospekt), Saint Petersburg (58 Moika Embankment), and Novosibirsk—with partner language and examination centers; accessed September 3, 2026

Goethe-Institut Russia, homepage: online German courses from A1.1 to C2 for adults, teens, and children; German exams; libraries; and program offerings, accessed September 3, 2026

Deutscher Kulturrat, statement by Olaf Zimmermann on the closure of the Goethe-Instituts in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Novosibirsk: the very last doors to cultural exchange are closing; the institute is described as one of the last bastions of cultural exchange, September 3, 2026

Secondary Sources:

Kyiv Independent, “Russia Will Close Goethe-Institut Branches in Response to the Closure of the Russian House in Berlin,” announcement by Lavrov at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, September 3, 2026

taz, No More German Exams in Moscow: 22,000 language exams per year at Goethe-Institut test centers in Russia; the story of Moscow student Leonid; a trendy teacher from Novosibirsk; the end of festivals and major exhibitions, September 3, 2026

Tagesspiegel, what the Goethe-Institut is doing in Moscow: fifteen employees, including two sent from Germany, a contact person in Novosibirsk, 22,000 exams and 10,000 learners per year; bank accounts frozen following the Berlin public prosecutor’s investigation into the Russian House; no more concerts or exhibitions, but libraries remain open; August 25, 2026

Tagesspiegel, the Russian House in Berlin following the announcement of its closure: a building dating from 1984, exhibition halls, a concert hall, a movie theater, a bookstore, and a post office; operated by Rossotrudnichestvo; agreements from 1992, 2011, and 2013; termination possible no earlier than June 7, 2027; 70,000 euros in property tax paid in 2026, September 2, 2026

taz, staff at the Russian House in Berlin ordered to leave Germany: Friedrichstraße 176–179, 29,000 square meters of usable floor space, opened in 1984, Rossotrudnichestvo subject to European sanctions since 2022, termination possible no earlier than June 7, 2027, September 2, 2026

LTO, legal basis for the closure: 2011 framework agreement on the reciprocal operation of cultural centers, renewable every five years with six months’ notice and a termination deadline of December 6, 2026; 2013 real estate agreement for ninety-nine years with twelve months’ notice; German land and Russian building, September 2, 2026

Sonntagsblatt and epd news agency: the Goethe-Institut faces closure in Russia—staff reduced from approximately 200 to 15 people in 2023; locations in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Novosibirsk; Novosibirsk branch opened in 2009; drone bomb at Leipzig and Halle Airport on August 4; comments by Gesche Joost on the end of an era, September 3, 2026

Kommersant: Lavrov announces the closure of Goethe-Institut branches at the Eastern Economic Forum; quote naming Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Yekaterinburg; hall of the Russian Society “Znanie,” September 3, 2026

The Moscow Times, Lavrov justifies the closure on grounds of self-respect, remarks made at the Eastern Economic Forum, Bonn consulate closed on September 18, August 4 drone incident in Leipzig and Halle, Zakharova’s remarks on the lack of evidence, September 3, 2026

t-online and dpa news agency, Moscow’s reaction: remarks by President Gesche Joost on the growing restrictions on the institute’s work and the 2023 budget cut, remarks by Wadephul, remarks by Peskov on “absurd measures,” testimony from a language teacher, September 3, 2026

Forschung und Lehre, the Goethe-Institut forced to cut jobs in Russia: staff cap imposed by Russian diplomats with a deadline of late May 2023, reduced operations in Moscow and St. Petersburg, closure of the Novosibirsk facility, some twenty learning centers, ten thousand teachers, and two million German learners; comments by Carola Lentz, June 1, 2023

Tagesspiegel, drone loaded with explosives discovered on the evening of August 4, 2026, in the security zone of the Leipzig-Halle Airport near a Ukrainian Antonov cargo plane; second drone and explosives found in Kabelsketal; measures announced on September 1; remarks by Putin in Bishkek on September 2; September 2, 2026

ZDF, the end of Germany’s cultural presence in Russia: quote from Lavrov; Bonn consulate closed on September 18; cap imposed on German diplomatic staff in 2023; Goethe-Institut’s response coordinated with the Foreign Ministry; September 3, 2026

Evropeiska Pravda, Zakharova promises a dignified response to the closure of the Russian House and the Consulate General in Bonn and denounces a fabricated pretext, September 1, 2026

Meduza, Russia will close the Goethe-Institut in response to the German decision; the Moscow institute opened on October 8, 1992; German measures effective September 1, September 3, 2026

Interfax, Lavrov states that the Goethe-Institut will be closed in Russia; remarks made at the 11th Eastern Economic Forum, September 3, 2026

This content was created with the help of AI.

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