Dec 4 : Russia has blocked Apple's video-calling app FaceTime, the state communications watchdog said on Thursday, as part of an accelerating clampdown on foreign tech platforms that authorities allege are being used for criminal activity.

The move follows restrictions against Google's YouTube, Meta's WhatsApp and the Telegram messaging service.

Critics say the curbs amount to censorship and a tightening of state control over private communications. Russia says they are legitimate law enforcement measures. Russian authorities have this year launched a state-backed rival app called MAX, which critics say could be used for surveillance - allegations that state media have dismissed as false.

Justifying its decision, the communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, said in an emailed statement:

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