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'Need to promote our own': Upper house assures no ban on YouTube after senators censored

Andrey Klishas added that the situation would in no way affect the Federation Council’s activities on the information front

Chairman of the Russian Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building Andrey Klishas Mikhail Metzel/TASS

Chairman of the Russian Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building Andrey Klishas

© Mikhail Metzel/TASS

MOSCOW, October 18. /TASS/. Google’s move to block the YouTube accounts of the Russian Federation Council (the upper house of parliament) won’t lead to a ban on the video hosting platform in Russia, Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building Andrey Klishas told TASS.

When asked if Google’s decision could result in a nationwide ban on YouTube, the senator said: "No. We need to promote our own platforms and make them comfortable for domestic users."

Klishas added that the situation would in no way affect the Federation Council’s activities on the information front.

The Federation Council said in a statement earlier on Tuesday that its YouTube accounts had been blocked due to sanctions and all videos had been deleted without any possibility of them being restored. According to the upper house, the accounts had over 200,000 subscribers and contained 20,000 videos, including live streams of meetings at the Federation Council, its committees and various forums, as well as senators’ remarks on pressing issues and educational programs about the history of the Russian state.

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