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A Russian MP controlling the country’s IT said on Friday that WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market, warning that the messaging app would be placed in the list of banned software.
Anton Gorelkin, deputy head of the lower house of Parliament’s Information Technology Committee, said in a statement that Max, a state-supported messaging app, which is integrated with government services, can gain a market share, if WhatsApp, which is owned by Meta, left the country.
“This is the time to prepare for WhatsApp to leave the Russian market,” Gorekin said, Meta is named as an extremist organization in Russia.
Meta -owned Facebook and Instagram have also been banned in Russia since 2022, when Moscow started his attack on Ukraine in a war that continues.
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A Russian MP, which controls the country, said that WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market. (Reuters)
Russian President Vladimir Putin last month signed a law, authorizing the development of Max, as Russia wanted to reduce its dependence on platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram.
Russian MPs approved legal amendments this week, proposed for anyone who finds online materials, or a fine of up to $ 5,000, or up to $ 63, the government consider the government, including Instagram and Facebook, and opposition politicians and activists, including extremists.
The proposal criticized, including some Kremlin Backers such as Margita Simonian, a state media executive, who said that journalists would be unable to investigate the activities of opposition funds such as the anti -corruption funds established by the deceased opposition figure Alexi Navalani.
Anton Nemkin, a member of the IT committee of Parliament, said it was determined that WhatsApp would leave Russia.
“The presence of such a service in Russia’s digital space is in fact, a legal violation of national security.”
Anton Nemkin, a member of the IT committee of Parliament, said it was determined that WhatsApp would leave Russia. (Getty image)
Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov said that all services should follow the Russian law when asked whether WhatsApp could leave the country.
Russia has long been attempted to establish what it describes as digital sovereignty by promoting home-developed services.
But critics have expressed concern that Russia’s new state -backed messaging app may track the activities of its users and suggest that Russia slow down WhatsApp speed to encourage the download of the new app.
YouTube has dropped a significant decline of more than 20 million daily users in Russia in Russia in the last year with a drop of more than 40 million in the last year as slow download speed has made it more difficult for people to reach video platforms.
The shares of the state-controlled technology company VK, which is developing homegron digital services such as a rival VK video for YouTube, increased by 1.9% on Friday.
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President Vladimir Putin signed a law, authorizing the development of integrated state -backed messaging apps with government services. (Sergei Bobulov/Pool/AFP via Getty Image)
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Kremlin released a list of this week’s instructions from Putin, including instructions to introduce additional restrictions on Russia’s use in Russia, including communication services produced in “unfortunate countries” that have imposed restrictions against Russia.
Putin gave the time limit of 1 September.
Referring to Putin’s order, Gorekin said that WhatsApp would probably be one of the communication services to face new sanctions.
Reuters contributed to this report.
