Russian tech firms Alexei Navalny and Google are pulling its secretive Kremlin critic from their stores, his team said on Friday. Moscow is accused of meddling in its internal affairs by Google and Apple.
During the next few days of Russia, Russia goes to the polls to elect a new parliament in a three-day vote that the ruling United Russia Party is expected to win despite a ratings slump after the biggest crackdown on the Kremlin’s critics in years.
Allies of Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's fiercest domestic opponent, planned to use the mobile app to organise a tactical voting campaign to deal a blow to United Russia.
This month, Russia demanded Apple and Google remove the app from their stores, saying a refusal to do so would be treated as meddling in its parliamentary election.
Apple and Google were not immediately available to answer questions about comment.
On Thursday, Russia said that official approaches had been made to the chief executives of two companies.
Ivan Zhdanov, a Naval intelligence affiliate based abroad, said on Friday that the removal amounted to political censorship.