Russian authorities are moving to limit certain calling functions on Telegram and WhatsApp, the messaging service owned by Meta Platforms, the Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday, citing communications regulator Roskomnadzor.
Roskomnadzor said the step was aimed at curbing criminal use of the platforms. “In order to counteract criminals... measures are being taken to partially restrict calls on these foreign messengers,” it said, according to Interfax. “No other restrictions have been imposed on their functionality.”
The regulator accused the owners of both platforms of ignoring repeated requests to act against their use for activities including extortion and terrorism.
The move comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin last month signed a law authorising the creation of a state-backed messaging service integrated with government systems, part of Moscow’s drive to reduce reliance on foreign technology.
Russia has for years sought what it calls “digital sovereignty” by promoting domestic services, a push that accelerated after many Western technology firms scaled back or exited the Russian market following the launch of its full-scale offensive in Ukraine in 2022.
Meta and Telegram did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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Norway’s government announced on Tuesday that Russia had breached its airspace three times in 2025, though it remained uncertain whether the incidents were intentional or caused by navigational mistakes.
Norway has joined in the condemnation of recent incidents of Russian violation of allied airspaces with the latest being Denmark and at the same time revealed that its airspace was violated three times by Russia over spring and summer this year.
On Tuesday, NATO denounced Russia for breaching Estonian airspace last week, warning it would employ “all necessary military and non-military tools” in its defence against what it described as “a pattern of increasingly irresponsible behaviour” by Moscow.
President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is currently on a working visit to New York, where he has held a series of bilateral meetings with representatives of major businesses and international organisations.
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
A Polish Air Force pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training flight ahead of the 2025 Radom International Air Show.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
Norway’s government announced on Tuesday that Russia had breached its airspace three times in 2025, though it remained uncertain whether the incidents were intentional or caused by navigational mistakes.
Norway has joined in the condemnation of recent incidents of Russian violation of allied airspaces with the latest being Denmark and at the same time revealed that its airspace was violated three times by Russia over spring and summer this year.
On Tuesday, NATO denounced Russia for breaching Estonian airspace last week, warning it would employ “all necessary military and non-military tools” in its defence against what it described as “a pattern of increasingly irresponsible behaviour” by Moscow.
Russia has launched a series of attacks on Ukraine's railways since the summer, using long-range drones to target key points, but the network is still functioning, the state railway CEO of Ukrzaliznytsia told Reuters.
Danish police said on Tuesday that drones that shut the country's main airport a day earlier appeared to have been flown by "a capable operator" seeking to demonstrate certain abilities, adding that no suspects had been identified.
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