YouTube has shut down Russia’s State Duma channel, triggering backlash from top Russian officials as the war in Ukraine extends into cyberspace.
The channel, which streams sessions from the lower house of Russia‘s Federal Assembly, violated the terms of service, the internet video behemoth indicated Saturday. Now, YouTube faces demands from Russia’s communications watchdog Roskomnadzor to restore the channel immediately as part of an escalating censorship war between Russia and Big Tech.
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“From the look of it, YouTube has signed its own warrant. Save content, transfer to Russian platforms. And hurry up,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Telegram after the ban.
YouTube took down the channel in response to sanctions from the United States and has indicated that the channel violated its rules. The company has been at odds with Roskomnadzor since the war broke out in Ukraine.
“Google is committed to compliance with all applicable sanctions and trade compliance laws. If we find that an account violates our Terms of Service, we take appropriate action. Our teams are closely monitoring the situation for any updates and changes,” a Google spokesperson told the Washington Examiner.
Russian regulators have repeatedly demanded YouTube to restore pro-Russian channels such as RT and censor thousands of “extremist” materials. Roskomnadzor has threatened fines against the video platform, which has not complied with Russian requests.
“The American IT company adheres to a pronounced anti-Russian position in the information war unleashed by the West against our country,” Roskomnadzor said, per Reuters.
Last month, Russia restricted access to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram inside Russia. The move came in retaliation for the companies’ blocking of pro-Russia content. A spokesperson for Google told the Washington Examiner, “YouTube remains available in Russia.”
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Russia, miffed that its propaganda has become increasingly cut off from the outside world, has teased retaliatory action.
“The USA wants to obtain a monopoly on promoting information. We cannot let it happen,” Vyacheslav Volodin, the Duma’s speaker, said on Telegram.
