This file photo taken on November 01, 2017 shows a man trying on a VR goggles at the stand of Russia's state-controlled broadcaster RT during the 10th Russian Internet Week in Moscow. (AFP PHOTO)

MOSCOW, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Federation Council, Russia's upper house, on Wednesday endorsed a bill to list foreign media as "foreign agents," shrugging off criticism by presidential advisors.

The bill was passed by 154 votes with one abstention, a live broadcast of the voting showed.

It will now be sent to Russian President Vladimir Putin to be signed into law.

The document was proposed in response to the latest situation of the Russian media in the United States, where RT America, the Washington, D.C.-based arm of Russia's state-owned English language news channel RT, was forced to register as a foreign agent.

It was interpreted by Moscow as an obstacle to Russian media activities in the United States and a step violating the freedom of speech.

In response, the State Duma, Russia's lower house, last week approved a bill vesting the government with the power to label foreign-funded media outlets as "foreign agents," and sent it to the Federation Council.

The Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights, Putin's advisory body, criticized the draft law for "numerous shortcomings" and asked the Federation Council to send it back to the Duma for revision.

But the council decided to endorse the bill, following the recommendation of its Constitutional Legislation Committee, which decided to reject the criticism.