“In March 2022, a decision was made to block access to the Facebook network (owned by Meta Platforms, Inc.) in the Russian Federation,” said a statement from Roskomnadzor, Russia’s communications regulator.
The Russian government said its decision came after Facebook had limited access to state media channels, including RT and Sputnik. Russian officials have accused Facebook of more than two dozen cases of “discrimination” against Russian media.
Roskomnadzor said its attempt to cut Facebook off Russian users was aimed at “preventing violations of key principles of free flow of information and unimpeded access of Russian users to Russian media on foreign Internet platforms.”
In response, Meta President of Global Affairs said Nick Clegg the company was doing “everything to restore its services”, but that “millions of ordinary Russians” will soon be cut off from reliable information.
“The move to break Facebook prompted White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki to respond during a press briefing on Friday.
“This is part of their effort, as you know, to cut off a lot of information from their public,” Psaki said, noting steps taken by Russia to curb the flow of information about the war in Ukraine. “It’s a model. This is not necessarily a new approach they have taken, but to deal with the information in their country to reach people. So, of course, we are deeply concerned about this and concerned about the threat to freedom of speech in the country. “