New Russian messaging app can develop only in competitive environment - Kremlin

MOSCOW. July 1 (Interfax) - The new Russian messaging app can develop properly only in a competitive environment, the existing apps must comply with Russian law, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.

"Firstly, messengers must comply with Russian law. Secondly, of course, everyone is interested in having competition, because in the absence of competition, the Russian messenger cannot develop, that's for sure. And thirdly, when the messenger, so to speak, starts functioning in full-format mode, we'll certainly use services to be offered," Peskov told journalists on Tuesday, when asked whether the Kremlin planned to switch to using a nascent Russian messaging app's communication channels, considering that the president instructed government agencies to support it, and whether there were any reasons to worry that the existing instant messaging services' operations might be slowed or blocked in Russia.