Roskomnadzor, Russia’s federal regulator and Internet and media censors, has warned independent Russian journalists to stop broadcasting a lengthy 90-minute interview with Zelensky on Sunday. Russian stores appeared to comply with the ban, but the interview was published in international media. The agency did not provide a reason for the ban, but prosecutors said a legal opinion would be issued on the Ukrainian president’s statements and the legality of the interview. Roskomnadzor published a statement on the agency’s Telegram page, saying that measures could be taken against the media, including “foreign media, acting as foreign agents”. He added that an investigation had been launched “to determine the extent of the responsibility and to take response measures”. Several independent media outlets, including Meduza, TV Rain, Novaya Gazeta and Kommersant, had announced plans to publish the Ukrainian president’s interview. Responding to the ban, Mr Zelensky accused Vladimir Putin of undermining freedom of speech in his country as the Kremlin’s crackdown on media intensified during the war. “The Russian censorship service has threatened,” Zelensky said in a video overnight. “It would be ridiculous if it were not so tragic.” In the interview, Mr Zelensky said his government would consider declaring neutrality in NATO, offering security guarantees and pledging to maintain Ukraine’s non-nuclear status as part of a peace deal. “Security guarantees and neutrality, non-nuclear regime of our state. We are ready to do it. “This is the most important point,” Zelensky said in an interview. He said no peace deal would be possible without the immediate cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of Russian troops, while refusing to agree to Russian demands for the demilitarization of the nation. Zelensky said Russia’s war in Ukraine had destroyed Russian-speaking cities in the country. “I do not even know who the Russian army has ever been treated like this,” he said, adding that the scale of the disaster “could not be compared” to the Russian wars in Chechnya, a Muslim republic in southern Russia that had been invaded for more. from a decade to the 1990s and was reduced to rubble. He ruled out a possible recapture of eastern territories occupied by Russian-backed separatists, saying it would lead to a world war and said he intended to reach a “compromise” on the eastern Donbas region held by pro-Russian forces. Russia guerrillas since 2014. Speaking about the devastation caused in the eastern port city of Mariupol, which has been under siege for weeks and has suffered the worst Russian attack with continuous bombardment, he said that the “humanitarian catastrophe” there is “unclear”. “All entrances and exits from the city of Mariupol are blocked,” Mr Zelensky said. “The port is being mined. “A humanitarian catastrophe in the city is clear, because it is impossible to get there with food, medicine and water,” he said. He also dismissed allegations that Ukraine has nuclear or chemical weapons, calling it a joke. Earlier this month, Mr Putin signed a law banning the media from publishing what he considered “fake” news, with violations leading to prison sentences of up to 15 months. The Independent has a proud campaign history for the rights of the most vulnerable and we first launched our “Welcome Refugees” campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and start this report on In the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we call on the government to move faster and faster to secure aid. To learn more about our Refugee Campaign, click here. To sign the application click here. If you would like to donate, click here for our GoFundMe page.
