Moscow Not Ruling Out Legislation Amendments Over Western IT Companies' Actions

Sumaira FH Published February 17, 2021 | 12:20 PM

Moscow is not ruling out possible amendments to the IT legislation over Western companies' actions amid the recent unauthorized rallies across Russia, deputy foreign minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with Sputnik

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th February, 2021) Moscow is not ruling out possible amendments to the IT legislation over Western companies' actions amid the recent unauthorized rallies across Russia, deputy foreign minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with Sputnik.

"I would not rule anything out in this sphere," Ryabkov said, asked if Russia could amend its legislation in light of fake news about the protests.

According to the Russian diplomat, "it is necessary to improve legislation, including in this sphere."

"This does not mean we will introduce some fundamental changes, although there is a need for profound changes.

Our colleagues from internet giants, which have multi-billion audience across the world, have gone a little too far in terms of their own vision of recklessness," Ryabkov noted.

The diplomat pointed to growing censorship in Western social networks and major online platforms.

"The attempts to simply disconnect 'undesired' people from social networks prove that media platforms ... are turning into instruments for punishment and coercion," Ryabkov concluded.