press release: junge Welt: “Unwanted” – Zelensky government blocks access to German daily junge Welt’s website in Ukraine

press release:
junge Welt: “Unwanted” – Zelensky government blocks access to German daily junge Welt’s website in Ukraine

Since the beginning of the week, the authorities in Kiev have blocked access to the website of the daily newspaper junge Welt in Ukraine, the Berlin-based national newspaper reports in its Wednesday edition.

When entering the URL www.jungewelt.de, the following message appears: “In accordance with the Law of Ukraine ‘On Electronic Communications’ and Decree of the President of Ukraine No. 64/2022 of February 24, 2022, on the imposition of martial law in Ukraine, this Internet resource has been blocked.” Ukrainian authorities had classified junge Welt as “unwanted” already August 12th, and added it to their “register of blocked websites.”

In Ukraine, the National Security and Defense Council and the National Communications Center, a department of the Special Communications Service consisting largely of military personnel, can impose such bans and censorship measures. Currently, around 4,600 websites are blocked, mainly from Russia and Belarussia, but also some Western European ones, such as the left-wing portal Iskra from Greece.

„The junge Welt reporting on activities of the fascist Azov militia and the background to NATO's proxy war against Russia, fought with the blood of Ukrainians, have struck a nerve in Kyiv,” jW editor-in-chief Nick Brauns comments on the blocking of the website. “The Zelensky government, having already silenced opposition voices in its own country, is now also resorting to censorship measures against critical media from abroad. This contradicts the Kiev government’s claims to defend so-called Western values sharply.”