Russia prepares a cap on foreign internet traffic via TSPU

This piece has two parts: a sourced news report, followed by the Sardaana News editorial position.

What happened

Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development (Mintsifry) is preparing to route all traffic from foreign domains through TSPU equipment in order to limit its volume for Russian users, Fontanka reports, citing Forbes. The ministry would gain the right to restrict such traffic above a set limit; the size of the limit has not yet been determined.

According to NGS, the provision may be added to the draft law reforming the telecom sector. The ministry said questions are still being worked through and it is too early to speak of a final form; it describes the reform’s goal as market transparency.

What counts as “foreign” traffic

According to Forbes, a large share of such traffic is not only VPNs and YouTube workarounds but also Android and iOS updates, app stores, Telegram and games. An expert cited by the outlet notes that splitting traffic by IP address is not 100% reliable and may break network connectivity: formal lists diverge from reality — a Russian website on foreign hosting would count as “foreign,” while a server rented in Russia would count as “domestic.”

Context

TSPU is deep packet inspection (DPI) equipment on internet providers’ networks, installed under the “sovereign internet” law (149-FZ): operators install it and Roskomnadzor controls it. Roskomnadzor head Andrei Lipov has said the Russian segment was fully equipped by the end of 2023.

Sardaana News editorial position

Russia keeps isolating its citizens from the open internet and is following the path of North Korea — in the degree of control it has already overtaken China. The reason is clear: after the war against Ukraine, Russia faces a major economic and political crisis, and the state fears open information. The authorities do not want citizens to learn how people live in the United States, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay — countries where human rights are guaranteed by law, there is no forced mobilization into war and there is no hunger. Russia also hides from its citizens the truth about the crimes of its soldiers in Ukraine. And this control works in both directions: by restricting the flow of information from Russia to the world, the regime makes sure the rest of the world does not learn about the repressions inside the country.