‘We know this stuff is complicated, but’: Apple and Google cave to Russian state officials, disabling access to Navalny’s voting initiative

As nationwide voting in Russia got underway and just hours after company representatives met with members of the Federation Council's "Sovereignty Committee," the American tech giants Apple and Google both blocked Russian users' access to Alexey Navalny's mobile app on their online stores, the App Store and Google Play. Still accessible to users outside Russia, the Navalny app was one of the key platforms the imprisoned opposition leader's team hoped to use to disseminate strategic voting recommendations in parliamentary races across the country. Meduza summarizes how the Russian authorities managed to disable the anti-Kremlin opposition's key online mobilization tools, precisely when activists needed them most. Original Article: https://meduza.io/en/feature/2021/09/17/we-know-this-stuff-is-complicated-but