The BRICS TimesRussia’s president has spoken publicly for the first time about the growing wave of internet shutdowns hitting the country. He says warning the public in advance would only help criminals plan better.
Putin breaks his silence on Russia’s internet blackouts
Russian President Vladimir Putin finally weighed in Thursday on the rising tide of mobile internet outages gripping the country. He defended the disruptions as a critical weapon against terrorism. He dismissed demands for advance public warnings, calling them a gift to criminals.
“Criminals, after all, hear everything and see everything. If some information reaches them, they will undoubtedly adjust their criminal behavior and their criminal plans,” Putin told a cabinet meeting.
First direct response from the Kremlin’s top voice
This marks Putin’s first personal comment on the confusion caused by these internet disruptions. Critics have called the blackouts a kind of “digital iron curtain.” Online restrictions have multiplied since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But outages have grown much sharper in recent months. Internet monitoring groups now report daily disruptions across most regions of Russia.
The Kremlin had earlier backed restrictions on specific platforms like Telegram and WhatsApp. Officials called those blocks legal and necessary for national security.
Putin calls for professionalism but keeps security first
On Thursday, Putin urged law enforcement agencies to “demonstrate the necessary ingenuity in their work, high professionalism and to take into account the citizens’ vital interests.” But he made clear that security takes priority over public convenience.
He also directed Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev to work more closely with Russia’s security services. The goal is to keep a so-called “white list” of approved online services running smoothly during blackouts. This approved list includes the state-backed messenger Max, official news agencies, and major banks. These services stay online while the rest of the internet goes dark.
VPN crackdown goes unaddressed
Notably, Putin said nothing about Russia’s recent push to restrict VPN use. VPNs have become a popular lifeline for Russians trying to bypass internet blocks. Shadayev had announced in late March that cutting down VPN usage was a top priority for his ministry. Putin’s silence on the issue left that policy direction without a presidential stamp at least for now.
