Mykhailo Fedorov is 31 years old, he is the youngest minister in the history of Ukraine. In 2019, he was commissioned to lead the digital transformation. Three years later he found himself in the war. And he understood that, using the new technologies, he could defend his country like him the most astute of generals.
In his cannon, Fedorov, slips tweets. The young minister he understood that weapons and soldiers are not enough to repel Russia. To put an end to the invasion, Putin’s regime must be overthrown by his own compatriots.
In order for this to happen, wrote Fedorov last March 2, at least two things are needed: “First of all, Visa and MasterCard have to leave Russia. Then you need a complete block of the Apple Store and all the apps downloadable from Google Play. This would be an irrecoverable blow ”.
Why Ukraine is asking for help from Apple and Google
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Just to Tim Cook, who in support of Ukraine has decided to suspend the sale of Apple products in Russia, Fedorov on Twitter writes: “Now finish the job and block the Apple Store in Russia. They kill our children, now we kill their accesses ”. The plan, in short, is to deny access to the most requested digital services, blocking the essential accounts to access them. In countries like Russia and China many human rights are denied, freedom of expression on the web is often limited, but entertainment is central to many people’s lives.
Can these digital sanctions really be more effective than bombs and bullets? Fedorov is convinced of this, to the point of asking for help even from Xbox and PlayStation, recipients of a letter addressed to all companies that develop video games and eSports platforms: “You all know what is happening in Ukraine – writes Fedorov – If you support human rights, you should abandon the Russian market”.
It’s not that wrong point to the moods of gamers. According to Statista data, 16% of Russian gamers use a console. Also taking into account those who use PCs or smartphones to play, the Russian video game market is the largest in Europe and one of the ten largest in the world. Suffice it to say that in the gaming industry, Russian has become the most popular language after English and Chinese. Precisely for this reason, on the other hand, a response from companies is more complicated. There is a lot of money at stake: revenues expected for 2022 amount to $ 2.444 billion.
“We are sure that the temporary blocking of accounts and the expulsion of Russian teams from any competition or eSports event will motivate Russian citizens to actively demand an end to the shameful military aggression,” Fedorov writes in his letter.
The Washington Post claims that “Fedorov has asked about 50 companies for help so far, while his staff works behind the scenes with a network of Ukrainian expatriates and authorities from other countries to get these companies to act.”
Wikipedia’s challenge to Putin
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The Ukrainian minister’s strategy has proved successful: Facebook and YouTube, for example, have decided to block Russian TV channels that carry Putin’s propaganda. Tim Cook has suspended the sale of Apple products in Russia. Elon Musk has activated his satellite broadband internet service, Starlink, in Ukraine.
The internet was at the center of Fedorov’s thoughts before Russia invaded Ukraine. His ministry, for which around 250 people work, had promised to connect as many Ukrainians as possible. And in the meantime, to create more jobs in the high-tech sector by inviting companies to invest in Ukraine.