Russia's diplomatic mission in Spain has criticized certain reports in local media for distorting the causes behind its regional problems. Earlier, the El Pais newspaper published a report alleging that some hackers assisted Catalan authorities with a website during the independence referendum from the territory of Russia. It also reported on the allegedly biased coverage of recent events in Spain in the Russian media. "In Russia, as in Spain, journalists have freedom to express their own opinions, but our journalistic culture does not allow us to spread fake news," a statement from the Russian Embassy in Madrid said Friday.