WSJ: Russia fines Google for failing to remove content discrediting armed forces

Russian court fined Google for “refusing to take down material it described as promoting same-sex relationships and discrediting the country’s armed forces,” The Wall Street Journal reported on May 11.

A Moscow court imposed a penalty of 3 million rubles (equivalent to $39,000) on the company in attempts to prevent dissemination of information it deems unfavorable for the state messaging.

This fine is not the first Kremlin attempt to control Google’s services in the country through imposing penalties. Prior to the full-scale invasion, the company faced a fine of 7.2 billion rubles ($92.6 million) in December 2021, the article reported.

The previous fine forced the Russian subsidiary of Alphabet's Google to file for bankruptcy, according to Reuters.

Since the full-scale invasion, Google used its resources to support Ukraine. At the end of last year, the company allocated a $2 million grant to train Ukrainians in digital literacy and shared its tools to help Ukrainian authorities increase their efficiency.