WhatsApp accuses Kremlin of trying to ‘fully block’ messaging app in Russia

The Russian authorities attempted to block WhatsApp on Wednesday, the company has said, as the Kremlin continues to crack down on foreign-owned messaging services and promote its own Russian-developed alternative.

In a statement, WhatsApp said that the Russian government had “attempted to fully block WhatsApp in an effort to drive people to a state-owned surveillance app”.

“Trying to isolate over 100 million users from private and secure communication is a backwards step and can only lead to less safety for people in Russia,” the statement continued. “We continue to do everything we can to keep users connected.”

Earlier this week, Russia’s media regulator Roskomnadzor removed WhatsApp from its list of domain names accessible in the country, meaning the messenger can now only be used through a virtual private network (VPN).

When asked what it would take for access to the messenger to be restored, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Meta, which owns WhatsApp as well as Instagram and Facebook, should “enter into dialogue with the Russian authorities, and then there will be an opportunity to reach an agreement.”

The block comes amid a Kremlin campaign to get Russians to use MAX, a state-backed messenger and “super app” that critics have warned could record user activity, which could then be made available to the authorities.

In October, Roskomnadzor began “partially blocking” WhatsApp as well as Telegram, the country’s most popular messaging platform, alleging that both had become “the main services used to scam and extort money, and to get Russian citizens involved in sabotage and terrorist activities”, while noting that its owners had ignored Russia’s demands to “take measures against criminals”.

Earlier this week, the media regulator further restricted Russians’ access to Telegram in a move that drew rare criticism from supporters of Moscow’s war in Ukraine, who argued that Russian soldiers on the front lines used the app to stay in touch with their families.

Russian-born Telegram CEO Pavel Durov said the Russian government was cracking down on his platform to “force its citizens to switch to a state-controlled app built for surveillance and political censorship”.

“Restricting citizens’ freedom is never the right answer,” Durov said. “Telegram stands for freedom of speech and privacy, no matter the pressure.”