Ukraine appeals to YouTube over ads for Russia’s Shahed drone production center
Photo: teenagers are taught to assemble drones at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone (wikipedia.org)
Ukraine demands that YouTube block ads for the sanctioned Alabuga center recruiting teenagers to produce attack drones, according to a joint statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
Alabuga advertised on YouTube
Ukrainian authorities have identified large-scale advertising integrations of Alabuga Polytech on the video platform. These ads were published without proper verification and without any response from YouTube.
At the same time, Alabuga Polytech is part of the sanctioned Special Economic Zone Alabuga. There, students — including minors — are involved in the production of Shahed drones.
Twitch responds quickly, YouTube stays silent
On April 25, a Counter-Strike 2 tournament was broadcast on Twitch and used to promote Alabuga. The platform quickly blocked accounts involved in streaming or advertising the event.
YouTube and Google have not responded to similar content so far.
“Esports and digital platforms cannot be used as a cover for militarization of education, recruitment of teenagers, and promotion of sanctioned military enterprises,” the joint statement said.
Earlier, in November 2025, a major fire broke out at a battery warehouse in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan, covering around 1,000 square meters.
The facility is linked to the assembly of Shahed-type attack drones.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine’s Defense Forces have increased the range of strikes on Russian territory by 170%.
