Facebook parent company Meta said in late February that it will restrict certain Russian state-owned media organizations in Ukraine. According to the latest reports, Meta’s move was made at the personal request of Ukraine’s head of state Zelensky.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly sent separate letters to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and COO Sheryl Sandberg asking them to ban Russian government-backed news Agencies posts on Facebook in Ukraine. Zelensky also asked Zuckerberg and Sandberg to stop serving Facebook and Instagram in Russia, a request that Meta later rejected.
Currently, Meta’s top executive dealing with Ukraine is the new vice president of global affairs, Nick Clegg. Clegg reportedly responded to Zelensky’s letters, not Zuckerberg or Sandberg.