Ukraine wants Twitter to ban Russia from posting on its social media platform and is urging people to pressure Twitter to demand Russia’s removal as the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor unfolds.
“Hey people, let’s demand @Twitter to remove @Russia from here,” said the Ukrainian government from its official account on Thursday. “No place for an aggressor like Russia on Western social media platforms. They should not be allowed to use these platforms to promote their image while brutally killing the Ukrainian people @TwitterSupport.”
After Russia invaded Ukraine, the official @Ukraine account urged its followers on Thursday to tag Russia’s account and “tell them what you think about them.”
A Twitter spokesperson said the company is proactively monitoring the conversation around the conflict for emerging narratives that violate the company’s rules, including its rules involving manipulated media.
Late on Wednesday night, Twitter published guidance in English and Ukrainian for using its platform in conflict zones via its @TwitterSafety account. Twitter implored people to use strong passwords, set up multi-factor authentication and explained how to disable location sharing. The company also shared links to information on what people should do if they think they’ve been hacked.
Alongside its efforts to get Russia booted, Ukrainian officials have also turned to the social messaging site to request donations for the Ukrainian army, post a meme about Russian President Vladimir Putin and organize a “Twitter-storm” of people posting messages with “#StopRussianAggression” and “#RussiaInvadedUkraine.”
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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