Yevgeny Prigozhin, the owner of the Russian mercenary group, has insulted the Kremlin for not being able to ban the US internet platform YouTube, Reuters writes.
Prigozhin announced on Telegram that YouTube is an information plague and that 40% of the videos published on the platform are directed against Russia. According to him, YouTube has not yet been banned in Russia because it is apparently indispensable for the common citizen, but mainly because Vladimir Putin’s administration is resisting it.
«We have a huge number of people on Staraya Square in the Presidential Administration who think only about one thing: if only Russia lost the war as soon as possible if only the Americans would come and regulate us as soon as possible.
Those who are against the closure of YouTube are, in my opinion, people who are traitors to their people and their country, traitors to previous and future generations of Russians.
They live abroad, take holidays abroad, raise children abroad, proclaim high values but, nevertheless, support the West in every possible way and feed on it,” Prigozhin wrote.
Tensions have risen after the Russian Defence Ministry announced the capture of Soledar, but did not mention the merits of Wagner’s group. Defence Ministry later added to its statement to include praise for the mercenary group.
Prigozhin, who is also known as «Putin’s chef», denied any involvement with Wagner’s group until last fall, but the war in Ukraine prompted him to come out publicly and portray himself as a strong and effective patriot.
About 90 million users use YouTube in Russia every month. Although there are various social network alternatives in Russia, YouTube has remained unbeaten so far. Several social networks, including Instagram and Facebook, have already been blocked in Russia.
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