The Russian State Duma has adopted a draft law of ‘the sovereign Runet’ in the first reading with 334 votes. The draft law will allow for turning off the internet if there is a global threat to the country.
Only 47 deputies voted against the draft law. State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said that the document needs to be polished and will be discussed with the government. The authors of the draft law are State Duma deputy Andrei Lugovoi and senators Andrei Klishas and Lyudmila Bokova.
The draft law will provide for the possibility to cut the Runet off the global network. The document also outlines the traffic routing rules to diminish the transfer of Russian users’ data abroad, RBC media holding writes.
Mobile network operators expressed their concern over the new law: they fear it will lead to an increase in their expenses. The Accounts Chamber also criticized the draft law saying that it might lead to a consumer price surge.