MOSCOW, June 25 (Reuters) – The Kremlin demanded an explanation from Apple on Thursday after several Russian mobile apps related to the Russian internet company VK were deleted from the U.S. tech giant’s App Store.
VK, a state-controlled technology company, said in a statement that its applications were removed “without warning or explanation”, even though the company has never been under U.S. sanctions.
“Through its actions, Apple is restricting Russian users’ access to popular services used by tens of millions of people every day: social networks, messaging apps, video platforms, email and educational products,” VK said.
“We consider these actions by Apple towards Russian users to be completely unjustified and unacceptable.”
Apple said it complies with the laws in the countries where it operates and that it removed VK’s apps from the App Store to comply with sanctions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the relevant Russian authorities would “address the matter directly with the corporation itself and demand an explanation.”
“If such explanations are not provided, we will need to draw conclusions accordingly regarding the continuation of any cooperation with this company,” he said.
Peskov said Russians frustrated by Apple’s decision could switch to Android devices, which still offer VK’s apps.
Russia has restricted use of foreign technology apps since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022 as part of a broader clash between Moscow and Western platforms.
Moscow has also been increasingly keen to promote home-grown internet services and increase its control over the local online space.
In particular, the government has been encouraging Russians to download and use MAX, a state-backed messenger developed by VK that now comes pre-installed on all mobile phones and tablets sold in Russia.
VK’s messenger is among the most-used in Russia and its VKontakte social network is akin to Facebook. The number of daily users of the company’s video hosting service reached 42.2 million in January, according to Mediascope data.
The company is not under Western sanctions, but its chief executive, Vladimir Kiriyenko, has been sanctioned by the European Union, Britain and the U.S. His father, Sergei Kiriyenko, is President Vladimir Putin’s first deputy chief of staff.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Gleb Bryanski, Tomasz Janowski and Bill Berkrot)
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