Russia Threatens To Block YouTube

Russia on Wednesday, September 29, threatened to block YouTube and the Kremlin called for “zero tolerance” towards the video hosting giant after it removed Russian state-backed broadcaster RT’s German-language channels from its site.

The online video company owned by Alphabet deleted Russian state-backed broadcaster RT’s German-language channels on Tuesday, stating that they had breached its COVID-19 misinformation policy.

On Wednesday, YouTube announced that it would block all anti-vaccine content, moving beyond COVID-19 to include content that alleges vaccines cause chronic health effects or contains misinformation on the substances in vaccines. 

Russia stated it was considering retaliating against German media and also accused YouTube of “unprecedented information aggression” after the company’s move against the RT channels.

The row creates a new line of tension in Russia’s standoff with foreign tech giants and its long-running push to assert greater sovereignty over its segment of the internet.

Russian state communications regulator Roskomnadzor stated it had written to Google and demanded that the YouTube restrictions on the RT channels be lifted. Russia could partially or fully restrict access to YouTube if it failed to comply, it added.

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