Kremlin openly acknowledges using censorship to control media amid war
The Kremlin has, for the first time, openly acknowledged unprecedented censorship during the war with Ukraine, calling it justified, according to Reuters.
On Friday, July 11, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told the Russian magazine Expert that wartime censorship in Russia is justified amid the conflict with Ukraine.
Peskov also confirmed that many opposition media outlets have been shut down over the past three years and that numerous journalists have left the country. In his view, these measures are necessary to protect the information space during the conflict.
Law against criticism of the military
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the authorities passed laws imposing multi-year prison sentences for discrediting the armed forces. These provisions have become tools for mass suppression of dissent and the closure of independent media outlets.
The Kremlin insists that such censorship is a necessary measure due to the information war.
Russian authorities have also blocked Twitter (now X), Meta Platforms (Facebook and Instagram), and later YouTube, the country’s most popular foreign video platform.
“It would be wrong to turn a blind eye to the media that are deliberately engaged in discrediting Russia. Therefore, I believe that this regime (censorship) is justified now,” Peskov told the magazine.
In response to comments that Trump was disappointed with Putin over his refusal to stop the full-scale war against Ukraine, Peskov said the Kremlin is paying close attention to the American leader’s statements.
The previous conversation between Trump and Putin took place on June 4. During that call, Putin complained to the US leader about Operation Spiderweb, which was successfully carried out by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU).
