Parliament does not rule out ban on Tik Tok for Ukrainians
13 June 2024 18:10
The issue of a possible ban on the popular social network TikTok in Ukraine has been raised more and more frequently in the public space recently. In an exclusive commentary to Komersant Ukrainian 
, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, MP and Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Freedom of Speech, spoke about the prospects of such a decision.
According to him, the ban requires a decision by the Security Service of Ukraine and the National Security and Defence Council, and a presidential decree to put it into effect. So far, the issue of banning TikTok has not been discussed at the NSDC meetings.
“So it is too early to talk about preparing a ban. However, given the public positions of the SBU, the GUR and other responsible structures, it is quite possible,”
– said Yurchyshyn.
At the same time, the MP sees an opportunity for the social network to avoid a ban in Ukraine if it opens a representative office, establishes manual content moderation and promptly responds to cases of violations of Ukrainian law.
“If TikTok opens a representative office in Ukraine, allows manual moderation of sensitive topics for us, such as the Russian-Ukrainian war, mobilisation, and is quick to contact us to remove content prohibited by criminal law in Ukraine, then, in principle, there is no need for a ban,” he explained,
– he explained.
Yurchyshyn noted that it is not yet known whether TikTok is ready to cooperate with Ukraine in this way. However, there are signs of this. In particular, TikTok recently blocked 24 channels that spread Russian propaganda.
Obviously, in the current circumstances, Ukraine is primarily concerned about possible Russian propaganda on the platform. That is why in April, the Centre for Countering Disinformation started official cooperation with TikTok’s administration to fight Russian propaganda.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world is not too concerned about Russian propaganda, but has its own complaints about the social network. For example, the European Union has launched its second investigation into TikTok, and the US has ordered ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, to sell the social network within 270 days, otherwise it will be banned.
TikTok is a popular social network and video hosting service for creating and sharing short vertical videos. It was launched in 2017 by the Chinese company ByteDance. Thanks to its recommendation algorithm and user-friendly interface, TikTok quickly gained immense popularity among young people around the world. However, TikTok has been criticised for privacy and security issues with user data due to its affiliation with a Chinese company.
