digital initiatives

Maxim, a 27-year-old schoolteacher from Moscow, is dissatisfied with the government's digital initiatives, particularly the new messaging platform Max, citing safety concerns and restrictions on WhatsApp and Telegram. He believes these measures limit personal communication and expresses frustration over difficulties in making international calls. Analyst Nikolai Petrov suggests the Kremlin's push for digital oversight is a response to geopolitical events and aims to suppress dissenting voices. He views the rollout of Max as a means to consolidate control over the populace, with the Kremlin currently overseeing 90-95 percent of communication, a figure that could rise to 99 percent.