Ukraine bans broadcasts of independent Russian TV station Dozhd

The National Radio and TV Council ordered Ukrainian broadcasters to stop airing reports by Dozhd within about a month, Dozhd said. It quoted an official from the channel's Ukrainian partner, Volya, as saying the reason for the ban was that Dozhd had violated a prohibition on advertising. The Interfax news agency, however, cited a council member as saying Dozhd had failed to recognize Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity when it aired an image showing the boundary with Crimea as the state border, suggesting that Crimea is part of Russia. Russia seized control of Crimea in 2014, but Kyiv and most of the rest of the world continue to consider the Black Sea peninsula part of Ukraine. The council has banned broadcasting of at least 35 Russian TV stations for infringing on national security and violating advertising regulations, according to Interfax.