Moscow’s not calling

Moscow is facing a communications collapse: mobile internet in the capital has been limping through serious outages all week, and whole districts in the city center are without connection. The authorities deny any involvement, but operators say that networks are being restricted on orders from above. Moscow has never experienced such widespread restrictions throughout the war, and the specific reasons for the latest shutdown remain unclear.

• Since March 6, Moscow has experienced widespread mobile internet shutdowns. In some districts, voice communications are also down. Even in the parliament building, where MPs passed the law allowing for shutdowns, open and password-protected networks completely stopped working.
• Mobile internet problems vary across the city, but are worse in the center, especially near the Kremlin. According to Kommersant, providers are restricting access on orders from above, but neither the networks nor the authorities will confirm this.
• Internet services have also been switched off on some lines and metro stations, previously renowned for their reliable underground connection. Emergency medical personnel are even reporting problems with transmitting information. 
• The shutdowns are hitting small and medium businesses hardest. The financial costs to Moscow’s businesses over five days were estimated at 3-5 billion rubles ($40-60 million). The worst hit services are couriers, taxis, car-sharing and retail. Mobile internet handles about 50-70% of all Russian traffic.
• Amid the shutdowns, Muscovites are seeking alternative means of communication and navigation. Search engines and marketplaces report a surge in interest in walkie-talkies, pagers and paper maps.

What’s causing it?

A source told RBC that the internet shutdowns were caused by tests for the so-called “white list” of select websites and apps controlled by the government that can operate through outages. But later in the week, even whitelisted services stopped working in Moscow. 

Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said the issue was due to “security concerns” and would last as long as necessary.

Federal authorities have started regularly jamming mobile networks, citing a need to protect against Ukrainian drone attacks since spring 2025. Over the past year, almost every region of the country has been affected by a record number of shutdowns.

French version edited by Marika Ruggiero, German version edited by Jan Möller