His decision is a significant ramping up of sanctions on Ukraine's neighbour for its annexation of Crimea and the continuing conflict in eastern Ukraine.
Those targeted include social networks VK.com and Odnoklassniki, search engine Yandex and the Mail.ru email service.
Ukrainian service providers have been ordered to block access to the sites.
The companies' offices in Ukraine will also face asset freezes and other restrictions although it was not immediately clear how the ban on the services would come into force and whether Ukraine had the technical means to enforce it.
The president's decision to push through a decision by Ukraine's national security council could prove controversial domestically, as VK (VKontakte) alone has an estimated 15 million users in Ukraine and Odnoklassiki (which translates as Classmates) is also widely popular.
Blogger Anton Hodza hailed the ban as a "fantastic opportunity" for Ukrainian start-ups, while another joked that Ukraine's authorities should prepare for riots from angry schoolchildren and pensioners.
Another source:
Ukraine to Block Russian Social Media in Sweeping Sanctions
The order will also require Ukrainian internet providers to block all services of the Yandex internet company, besides its search engine, and the anti-virus companies Kaspersky Lab and Dr Web.
Ukraine also will impose asset freezes and broadcast bans on Russian television channels TV Tsentr, RBK, VGTRK, NTV-Plus, Zvezda, TNT, REN and ORT, the independent Novaya Gazeta newspaper reported. It will also block the Rossiya Segodnya Russian state media conglomerate, the RIA Novosti news site, a branch of the conglomerate, reported.
The order also blacklists the Aeroflot and Transaero airlines, the Rossiya and Gazprombank banks and the defense companies Russian Helicopters and Rosoboroneksport.
Reaction was quite predictable: Russian hackers tried (without success) to DDoS Ukrainian Presidents official webpage.
Also this.
Given the fact, that nearly a half of the daily net audience in Ukraine visits these Russian social networks, this means that soon we will see a panic on Moscow’s stock with the values of these IT-firms plummeting. A deserving response for the hybrid war.
Meanwhile, supposedly neutral and nonpartisan Human Rights Watch sides with the Kremlin:
Ukraine: Revoke Ban on Dozens of Russian Web Companies
Protect Freedom of Expression and Media Pluralism
Ukraine is a party to the European Convention on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which guarantee freedom of expression, including access to information. Only restrictions that are necessary and proportionate for a legitimate purpose may be imposed, and the ban set out in the decree does not pass that test.
In the past two years, Poroshenko has signed similar decrees introducing sanctions. In June 2016, a presidential decree banned 17 Russian journalists, editors, and media executives from traveling to Ukraine. In September 2015, the government banned several hundred Russian individuals and legal entities from entering Ukraine for a year. Among them were 41 journalists and bloggers from several countries, including Russia, Israel, the United Kingdom, and Germany. In May 2016, Poroshenko removed 29 people from the list of those sanctioned.
“In a single move Poroshenko dealt a terrible blow to freedom of expression in Ukraine,” Cooper said. “It’s an inexcusable violation of Ukrainians’ right to information of their choice, and the European Union and Ukraine’s other international partners should immediately call on Ukraine to reverse it.”
Why are some people so clueless? Russia is an adversary state that wages both real and hybrid war against the West. And where there is a War going on you have to limit the propaganda of your enemy. It would be real strange for the Britain or the US to allow Goebbels broadcasts and sponsored media on their territory. Blockage of the enemy agitation and propaganda is an inevitable necessity of the wartime.
What makes people, smart and supposedly honest people into Moscow’s useful idiots? That’s beyond me.
Any thoughts NSG?
UPD: Now with poll!
