Russia blocks Facebook, Twitter; passes law to criminalise 'fake' news on Ukraine war

Russian President Vladimir Putin has intensified a crackdown on media outlets and individuals who fail to tow the Kremlin line on the war in Ukraine. The country has blocked Facebook and Twitter and signed into law a bill that criminalises the intentional spreading of what Moscow deems to be 'fake' reports.

The law provides for sentences of up to three years or fines for spreading what authorities deem to be false news about the military, but the maximum punishment rises to 15 years for cases deemed to have led to “severe consequences.”

The move against the social media giants on Friday follows bans imposed on the BBC, the US government-funded Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, and Latvia-based website Meduza.

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The government's sweeping action against the foreign outlets that publish news in Russian seeks to establish even tighter controls over what information the domestic audience sees about the invasion of Ukraine.