Moscow is stepping up its swing to the authoritarian right.  Russian police raided the offices of Human Rights Watch, Greenpeace, and others in its crackdown on so-called “foreign agents” that have been critical of Vladimir Putin’s increasingly oppressive Kremlin.

Reaction is coming in from other countries:  France sent a memo to the Russian ambassador demanding an explanation.

Germany called the number-two diplomat in the Russian embassy to explain why two German non-governmental organizations (NGO) in Moscow and one in Saint Petersburg were raided

At least part of the US reaction was expressed on Twitter, with the American Embassy posting on its feed, "It is with great concern that we are following reports of unprecedented inspections of NGOs across Russia."

The sweep comes eight months after Vladimir Putin signed a law demanding that NGOs that receive funding from abroad label themselves as "foreign agents".

Critics said the law was reminiscent of Soviet-era efforts to demonize foreigners and those "collaborating" with them.