“We amount the SBU demand … to yet another manifestation of the Ukrainian authorities’ repressive policy toward the media. This act of political censorship was Kiev’s signature under a cynical infringement on the key democratic principles of ensuring free distribution of information and unobstructed access to it, with absolute ignorance of its international obligations with regard to the protection of freedom of speech and expression,” Zakharova said in a statement.
On Friday, Apple reached out to Russia’s Rossiya Segodna international news agency and the VGTRK family of broadcasters to say that the SBU had asked it to remove mobile apps of these brands from the Ukrainian segment of App Store. Several VGTRK apps were already withdrawn.
Ukraine has banned the broadcasting of dozens of Russian channels since the summer of 2014. The blacklist includes Channel One, Rossiya 24, Zvezda, REN-TV, Life News, RTR-Planeta, RT, as well as many entertainments, children’s or sports channels.
In Russia, these restrictions were repeatedly called unacceptable and regarded as an attack on freedom of the media.
According to Rossiya Segodnya Director General Dmitry Kiselev, the Security Service of Ukraine’s (SBU) demand for tech giant Apple to remove Rossiya Segodnya international news agency’s applications in Ukraine is censorship.
(c) SouthAfricaToday
If Apple don’t remove them, just remove Apple from Ukraine. It’s so laughable when the vermin start whining about international commitments etc. Especially from a country that never upheld an international commitment in it’s life.
Is there another, stronger synonym for “hypocrite”?
bigot
charlatan
crook
impostor
phony
trickster
Never mind. I’ll just call the mafiosi pathetic little crybabies.
I wonder if Navalny is feeling Zakharova’s “…protection of freedom of speech and expression.” right now?
Maria watches too much porn…
She doesn’t watch, she’s the star attraction. When she dies she’ll be buried in a Y shaped coffin. 🤣
OMG! Baaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Rather T shaped. LMFAO!
She probably watches her own…;))
I started boycotting Apple since they moved their production from the US and Ireland to China. They are scum!
I don’t have any Apple products in the house. Phones are Samsung or Sony.
That evil skank should FOAD.
“We call on Apple not to pander to the Ukrainian authorities and not to take any action that could actually transform the US IT corporation into an accomplice to Kiev’s crimes against freedom of speech,” says the statement posted on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s site.
The Ukrainian Security Service’s (SBU) demand to Apple Inc. to take down the apps of Russian media outlets from Ukrainian AppStore demonstrates the repressive policy of Ukrainian authorities and proves that Kiev disregards its international obligations in the field of the freedom of expression, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
“We view the demand of the Security Service of Ukraine to the US company Apple to remove apps of the Russian media outlets VGTRK, Rossiya Segodnya and NTV from Ukrainian AppStore as another manifestation of the Ukrainian authorities’ repressive policy towards the media,” Zakharova said.