Kiev Bans Use of Russian Software by Ukrainian Government Bodies

The Ukrainian cabinet banned the use of Russian software by government bodies, including technologies from major Moscow-headquartered security firm Kaspersky Lab.

KIEV (Sputnik) — Yatsenyuk has instructed the Ukrainian State Special Communications Service to "immediately turn off program updates, acquisition and use by government bodies," the statement reads.

"[Ukrainian Prime Minister] Arseniy Yatsenyuk noted that, in accordance with a decision by the National Security and Defense Council, there is a direct ban on the use of Russian software. He noted that this concerns, in particular, software from the Kaspersky Lab," Ukraine's cabinet said in a statement.

Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab, the largest privately-owned cybersecurity company in the world, is not planning to exit the Ukrainian market despite the sanctions imposed by the Kiev authorities against it, the company’s head of Corporate PR told Sputnik on Wednesday.

According to the company, Kaspersky Lab has operated in the Ukrainian market since 2006, has been a diligent taxpayer and has used cutting-edge technologies to provide protection against cyberthreats to its customers, including government organizations and businesses.

Kaspersky Lab provides protection to over 400 million users and 270 thousand companies worldwide, ranging from large enterprises to small and medium businesses.