Key facts
- Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation said the blocked channels belonged to Russian propagandists, pro-war bloggers and entertainers supporting Russia's war.
- Channels belonging to war correspondent Alexander Sladkov and pro-war blogger Sergei Kolyasnikov, also known as Zergulio, were among those restricted.
- Russian performers Nadezhda Babkina, Yulia Savicheva, Victoria Daineko, Masha Weber and the band Uma2rman were also targeted, the center said.
- The center said the restrictions apply to access within Ukraine, not a worldwide removal of the channels.
YouTube blocked 16 Russian channels for viewers in Ukraine, including foreign-language versions of the children's cartoon "Masha and the Bear," Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation said on November 13. The center said the channels belonged to Russian propagandists, pro-war bloggers and entertainers who support Russia's war against Ukraine.
Among those affected were channels belonging to Russian war correspondent Alexander Sladkov and pro-war blogger Sergei Kolyasnikov, also known as Zergulio. The restrictions also targeted Russian performers Nadezhda Babkina, Yulia Savicheva, Victoria Daineko, Masha Weber and the band Uma2rman, as well as the channels "Russian SVO Compilations" and "Sevastopol Correspondent," the center said.
The measures follow sanctions President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed in August against five Russian citizens and four organizations involved in producing and distributing the cartoon, including animation studio Animaccord. Ukraine's Presidential Office accused the series of promoting pro-Russian narratives disguised as children's entertainment, and YouTube subsequently restricted access to the cartoon's Russian-, Ukrainian- and English-language channels for viewers in Ukraine.
In October, Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council reported that another 39 channels spreading Russian propaganda had been blocked in Ukraine or removed from YouTube. The new restrictions apply to access within Ukraine, rather than a worldwide removal of the channels.