WhatsApp May Be Blocked in Russia

Members of the State Duma have raised concerns regarding the potential for WhatsApp to be blocked in Russia (the service belongs to Meta, which has been recognized as extremist and banned in the country), reports the 'Parliamentary Newspaper.'

According to Oleg Matveychev, Deputy Chairman of the Duma’s Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications Committee, the issue is that extremist and terrorist organizations operate through the messenger. At the same time, WhatsApp has no ties with Russian law enforcement agencies.

“Extremist chats are regularly created there, recruiting people. Therefore, something needs to be done about it, and we must see how willing this service is to cooperate, considering that no one from this entity is asking for serious changes in moderation. We have taken our step, now the 'ball' is in WhatsApp's court,” said Matveychev.

He is supported by Andrei Svintsov, also Deputy Chairman of the Duma’s Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications Committee. According to him, recent events related to the blocking of Viber confirm that the likelihood of WhatsApp being blocked is increasing. He also noted that if the company begins to comply with Russian legislation, it will not face restrictions.