Russia says WhatsApp messenger “must be ready” to leave the country

State Duma deputies promise WhatsApp problems and suggest the company “prepare to exit the Russian market.”

WhatsApp messenger should prepare to leave the Russian market, a lawmaker who regulates the IT sector said on Friday. Reuters reports .

He warned that the messenger, owned by Meta Platforms, is likely to be added to the list of banned software.

Anton Gorelkin, deputy chairman of the lower house of parliament’s committee on information technology, said that the state-owned MAX app could increase its market share if WhatsApp, which is used daily by 68% of Russians, leaves the market.

“It’s time for WhatsApp to prepare for its exit from the Russian market,” Gorelkin said, adding that Meta is on the list of extremist organizations in Russia.

Significantly, this week Russian lawmakers approved sweeping amendments to the law that would impose fines of up to 5,000 rubles ($63) for anyone searching the internet for material the government considers extremist.

Anton Nemkin, a member of the parliamentary committee on information technology, said that WhatsApp’s fate in Russia is now decided. He said:

“The presence of such a service in Russia’s digital space is, in fact, a legal violation of national security.”

When asked about WhatsApp’s possible departure from Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied that all services must comply with Russian law.

Interestingly, critics have raised concerns that Russia’s new state-backed messaging app could track users’ activities, and have suggested that Russia could slow down WhatsApp to encourage downloads.

This week, the Kremlin published a list of Putin’s instructions, including a decree imposing additional restrictions on the use in Russia of software, including communications services, produced in “unfriendly countries” that have imposed sanctions against Russia.

Putin has set a deadline of September 1. Gorelkin, citing Putin’s decree, said that WhatsApp will likely be among the communication services that will be restricted.

Ban on social networks and services in the Russian Federation

Social media companies Facebook and Instagram have been banned in Russia since 2022, when Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops to the war in Ukraine.

YouTube’s audience in Russia has shrunk sharply over the past year to less than 10 million daily users from more than 40 million in mid-2024, as lower download speeds have made it harder to access the service.

YouTube has blocked the channel of former advisor to the Office of the President of Ukraine Oleksiy Arestovych and other individuals against whom sanctions were imposed in Ukraine.

The list included the channels of political scientist Konstantin Bondarenko, blogger Dmitry Vasylets, Russian propagandist Anastasia Kashevarova, and the leader of the Poton organization, Pavlo Onyshchenko.

(C)UNIAN 2025