Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Facebook for its role in helping him win the propaganda war after the platform announced it would permit calls for violence against Russians.
Following its move to allow praise for the pro-Ukraine neo-nazi Azov Battalion last week, Facebook said they would permit ‘calls for violence against Russians’.
“As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine we have temporarily made allowances for forms of political expression that would normally violate our rules like violent speech such as ‘death to the Russian invaders.’ We still won’t allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement.
Moscow responded by banning both Facebook and Instagram in Russia.
President Zelensky took to Twitter to thank Zuckerberg for standing with Ukraine in the “informational space.”
“War is not only a military opposition on UA land. It is also a fierce battle in the informational space,” Zelensky tweeted. “I want to thank @Meta and other platforms that have an active position that help and stand side by side with the Ukrainians.”
In other words, Facebook is directly aiding Ukraine by allowing pro-Ukraine propaganda to spread while banning any pro-Russia propaganda.