Russia asks Google to block article questioning Russia’s official death toll
(VOVWORLD) -Russia has asked Google to block a news article which repeats allegations the Kremlin may be underreporting its coronavirus death toll.
The article, by online news outlet MBKh Media, refers to a Financial Times and New York Times report claiming Russia could have 70 per cent more Covid-19 deaths than it reports.
MBKh Media said on Thursday it had been told by Google in a letter the request was made after a decision by the Russian prosecutor-general's office. A Google spokesperson stated that it will review all legitimate legal requirements of the governments of the countries where Google operates.
Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized the Financial Times and the New York Times and asked the two newspapers to recall the "false information."