Russia is blocking the WhatsApp messaging app from users, the Kremlin announced
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Russia has blocked US-based messaging app WhatsApp, the Kremlin announced on Thursday, saying the company’s subsidiary Meta had failed to comply with local laws.
The move follows six months of pressure on WhatsApp and comes after Meta-owned Facebook and Instagram were banned in Russia in 2022 following Moscow’s attack on Ukraine.
“Due to Meta’s unwillingness to comply with Russian law, a decision like this was indeed taken and implemented,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
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Russia has blocked US-based messaging app WhatsApp, citing the company’s failure to comply with local laws. (REUTERS/Thomas White/File Photo/Reuters)
Peskov instead urged Russians to use MAX, the country’s state-run messaging app.
“MAX is an accessible alternative, a progressive messenger, a national messenger, and is available in the civilian market as an alternative,” he said.
WhatsApp, Russia’s most popular messenger app, said in a statement that the Russian government “tried to fully block” the app “in an effort to drive people to a government-run surveillance app.”
“Trying to isolate more than 100 million users from private and secure communications is a step backwards and could lead to less security for the Russian people,” WhatsApp wrote on X. “We continue to do everything we can to keep users connected.”
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The Kremlin has announced it has blocked WhatsApp as Moscow continues to crack down on foreign technology platforms. (Photos by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
Critics say the MAX is a surveillance tool, which Russian authorities have denied.
Russian authorities have pushed for telecommunications infrastructure where foreign technology companies must comply with local laws or face bans.
Other platforms, including Snapchat and YouTube, have also been blocked or restricted by Russian authorities. Meta was previously designated as an extremist organization in Russia.
Roskomnadzor, Russia’s communications regulator, began restricting WhatsApp and other messenger services last August, according to Reuters, making it difficult to complete calls to them.
In December, Roskomnadzor accused WhatsApp of violating Russian law and being a platform used for “planning and carrying out terrorist acts on the territory of the country, recruiting criminals and committing fraud and other crimes.”
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Russia has blocked Meta-owned WhatsApp, urging citizens to use an alternative messaging service controlled by the government. (Photo by Nikolas Kokovlis/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Getty Images)
WhatsApp has also been fined in Russian courts for failing to remove banned content.
Reuters contributed to this report.
