Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, February 20, signed a law requiring telecom operators to block any communications at the demand of the Federal Security Service (FSB), after both chambers of parliament approved the measure
Under the law, operators must suspend services upon receiving FSB demands “in cases established by regulatory legal acts of the president.” Operators won’t be liable for failing to meet service-contract obligations if the disruption stems from complying with FSB demands, according to the text published on the official legal information portal.
The State Duma passed the amendments to the Communications Law on February 17 in both the second and third readings. The presentation and vote took just two minutes. The Federation Council approved the bill the next day.
The initial draft said services could be cut off at the FSB’s “request” “in cases established by regulatory legal acts of the president and the government, to protect citizens and the state from emerging security threats.” By the second reading, “requests” were replaced with “demands,” and the language about protecting the public from “security threats” was removed. References to the government were also deleted, leaving only the president.
That means Putin can set the conditions for blocking internet and phone service in specific regions or nationwide without explaining the grounds. The law further strengthens the role of security agencies, especially the FSB, political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin told DW. Putin is “expanding his freedom of action,” narrowing civil society’s rights and seeking to balance competing security power centers, he said.
Yevgeny Smirnov, a lawyer with the First Department project, said the grounds for blocking communications in Russia will no longer be limited. “This rather frees the president’s hands, since he will determine such cases,” he told the outlet Agentstvo. Legal expert Valeria Vetoshkina said the amendments don’t fundamentally change the existing balance of power; they streamline the legal paperwork and formal barriers for FSB demands.
