On Thursday, the US government alleged Moscow cracking down on the media amid Russia’s war on Ukraine. Russia is involved in an unjustified war on Ukraine. At home, the Kremlin is waging a full-fledged assault on press freedom and the truth, and Moscow’s efforts to mislead and suppress the truth about the brutal incursion are escalating.
Russians have the right to be informed
The statement comes in the wake of Russian media shutdowns and the detainment of hundreds of people in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other Russian cities since anti-war protests emerged on February 24 in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s release of a full-scale attack on Ukraine.
The Russian people did not choose this war. Instead, Putin did, according to the State Department. They have a right to be informed about the death, hardship, and destruction imposed on the people of Ukraine by their government. Russia’s citizens have a right to know about the human costs of this purposeless war on their soldiers, rferl.org posted.
“Special military operation in Ukraine” not “war”
On March 1, Russia’s Prosecutor General ordered RosKomNadzor, the country’s communications regulator, to limit access to the independent media outlets Radio Ekho Moskvy and Dozhd TV, blocking their websites and limiting their ability to broadcast. The outlets were falsely accused of inciting extremism and violence and disseminating deliberately false information about Russian military personnel’s actions in Ukraine.
According to a US Government of State post, Russia’s government is also slowing down the platforms Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, which tens of millions of Russian citizens use to access independent comments and insights and connect and the outside world. These partial blockages make it even more difficult for Russian citizens to see and share evidence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
If other online platforms and Golos Ameriki (VOA Russian) do not conform with requirements to remove reporting on Russia’s aggression, RosKomNadzor has threatened to block them. Roskomnadzor had previously warned the country’s media that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine should not be referred to as a “war” or an “invasion,” but rather as a “special military operation in Ukraine.”
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