Moscow Cracks Down On Messaging Platform To Restrict Citizens ‘Hostile’ To Putin, UK Says

Russia has blocked any of its citizens from using the encrypted messaging app Signal in its latest information crackdown, according to UK intelligence.

Russian media reported that Russian Federal telecommunications regulator Roskomnadzor had blocked Signal on August 9, supposedly to “prevent the use of the messenger for extremist or terrorist purposes”.

This naturally led to assumptions this was part of the Kremlin’s ongoing attempts to control the narrative around the war, especially now Ukraine has turned the tables on Moscow. 

After all, on August 6 – just three days b before Moscow blocked Signal – Ukraine breached Russia’s borders in a surprise incursion, and quickly secured 1,000 sq km.

But, according to the latest update from the UK’s ministry of defence (MoD), this “is highly unlikely” to be the reason behind the increased restrictions.

Instead, it believes the Kremlin is trying to restrict criticism of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s regime.

“Signal is used by many independent Russian journalists and opposition activists to evade the Russian government’s pervasive system of electronic monitoring,” the MoD explained.

“In this context, the restriction on Telegram is likely intended to increase the ability of the Russian authorities to monitor and restrict the communications of private citizens hostile to the regime.”

Outspoken critics of the Kremlin have met unfortunate ends in the past, including opposition leader Alexei Navalny who died while serving a lengthy sentence in a penal colony earlier this year.

The MoD said: “This comes at a time when the Russian government is proscribing independent media organisations, and disrupting YouTube and the messaging service WhatsApp; measures intended to increase government control over access to media and information in Russia.” 

At the same time, Russians are on the cusp of becoming disillusioned over the war, according to one of Putin’s former speechwriters, exiled Abbas Gallyamov.

He told Times Radio the general public are starting to “doubt the reasons for the war” now Russia has been invaded for the first time since World War 2.