Russia warns Google, Apple over refusal to remove Kremlin critic Navalny's app

Russia on Thursday warned Google and Apple for refusing to remove jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's app ahead of elections, stating that it might be interpreted as foreign meddling in the country's domestic affairs. Parliamentary elections are set for later this month, and practically all strong Kremlin critics, including Navalny's allies, have been forbidden from running.

Russia accuses tech giants of election interference

Roskomnadzor, Russia's communications authority, ordered last month that Google and Apple remove Navalny's app from their respective stores. Roskomnadzor increased pressure on the Western tech titans on Thursday, saying they might face criminal charges if they continue to refuse to comply with Russian legislation.

Navalny's app supports his Smart Voting method, which aims to support candidates who are most likely to beat those from Russia's main party, United Russia.

In the run-up to the 19 September legislative election, Russian opposition sympathisers, independent media, and human rights campaigners have been subjected to intensified government pressure. Navalny's supporters have linked the crackdown to the Kremlin's attempt to crush the opposition and maintain United Russia's dominant position.

Navalny's Foundation for Fighting Corruption and a network of his regional offices were declared extremist organisations by a Russian court in June, barring anybody linked with the groups from seeking public offices and exposing them to long prison terms. Russian authorities reportedly targeted his  Navalny's colleagues and shut 50 websites maintained by his team or followers for allegedly propagating extremist group propaganda.

Google, Apple's interference in Russia's domestic polls 

The referendum on 19 September is largely regarded as a crucial step in President Vladimir Putin's efforts to solidify his control ahead of the 2024 presidential election in Russia. Last year, Russia's 68-year-old president, who has been in power for more than two decades, pushed through a constitutional reform that might allow him to stay in power until 2036.

Navalny, 45, is Putin's most adamant political opponent. He was detained in January after returning from Germany, where he had spent five months recovering from a nerve agent poisoning. He blames the Kremlin for poisoning, a charge that Russian officials refute.

This year in February, Navalny was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison for breaking the terms of a suspended sentence stemming from an embezzlement conviction in 2014, which he denounced as politically motivated. Following criticism that they were used as a weapon to help drive tens of thousands of people onto the streets to demand Navalny's release in a wave of rallies earlier this year, the Russian authorities have upped their pressure on major social media platforms. Facebook and Twitter have been penalised several times for failing to remove content that Russian authorities deem illegal, and early this year, Roskomnadzor reduced the pace at which Twitter can operate.

Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, warned that the IT giants would not be tolerated if they refused to follow Russian legislation and delete the forbidden content. "Such arrogant and selective behavior and demonstrative ignoring of repeated requests from the relevant Russian agencies regarding the content designated as extremist is particularly unacceptable in the context of the current electoral processes," Zakharova said. "It would be legitimate to interpret further connivance of the US IT-giants to the publication of the banned materials as an interference in domestic affairs of the Russian state."

(With inputs from AP)

(Picture Credit: AP/Unsplash)