Boston Herald

Apple, Google remove opposition app

-

MOSCOW — Facing Kremlin pressure, Apple and Google on Friday removed an opposition-created smartphone app that tells voters which candidates are likely to defeat those backed by Russian authoritie­s, as polls opened for three days of balloting in Russia’s parliament­ary election.

Unexpected­ly long lines formed at some polling places, and independen­t media suggested this could show that state institutio­ns and companies were forcing employees to vote. The election is widely seen as an important part of President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to cement his grip on power ahead of the 2024 presidenti­al polls, in which control of the State Duma, or parliament, will be key.

Russian authoritie­s have sought to suppress the use of Smart Voting, a strategy designed by imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny, to curb the dominance of the Kremlinbac­ked United Russia party.

Apple and Google have come under pressure in recent weeks, with Russian officials telling them to remove the Smart Voting app from their online stores. Failure to do so will be interprete­d as interferen­ce in the election and make them subject to fines, the officials said.

Last week, Russia’s Foreign Ministry summoned U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan over the issue.

On Thursday, representa­tives of Apple and Google were invited to a meeting in the upper house of Russia’s parliament, the Federation Council. The Council’s commission on protecting state sovereignt­y said in a statement afterward that Apple agreed to cooperate with Russian authoritie­s.

Apple and Google did not respond Friday to a request from The Associated Press for comment.

Google was forced to remove the app because it faced legal demands by regulators and threats of criminal prosecutio­n in Russia, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter who also said Russian police visited Google’s Moscow offices Monday to enforce a court order to block the app. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivit­y of the issue.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday the presidenti­al administra­tion “definitely, of course” welcomes the companies’ decision, because the app was “outside the law” in Russia.

In recent months, authoritie­s have unleashed a sweeping crackdown against Navalny’s allies and engaged in a massive effort to suppress Smart Voting.

Navalny is serving a 2Kyear prison sentence for violating parole over a previous conviction he says is politicall­y motivated. His top allies were slapped with criminal charges and many have left the country. Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting Corruption and a network of regional offices have been outlawed as extremist organizati­ons in a ruling that exposes hundreds of people associated with them to prosecutio­n.

 ?? AP ?? CASTING BALLOTS: Russian Army soldiers vote during the elections outside St. Petersburg Friday.
AP CASTING BALLOTS: Russian Army soldiers vote during the elections outside St. Petersburg Friday.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States