Since the beginning of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, Yandex has followed the information policy and censorship of the Government of the Russian Federation. The search results of the Yandex search engine have complied with the demands of the Russian authorities, showing only the sources related to Russian pro-war propaganda. Moreover, Yandex helped websites pushing false and pro-Russian claims about the invasion of Ukraine to make profit through digital advertising.
On 24 February 2022, Khudaverdyan attended a meeting of leading businesspersons at the Kremlin with the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, to discuss the impact of the course of action in the wake of Western sanctions. The fact that he was invited to attend that meeting shows that he is a member of the inner circle of leading businesspersons close to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and that he is supporting or implementing actions or policies which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, as well as stability and security in Ukraine.
Yandex is the largest technology firm in Russia. It brings a considerable tax revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation. In 2019, Yandex agreed to a restructuring that gave a “golden share” to a newly formed Public Interest Foundation built to “defend the Russian Federation interests”. Through the Public Interest Foundation, the Government of the Russian Federation is able to have a veto over a defined list of issues.
He is a leading businessperson operating in Russia and a businessperson involved in an economic sector providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation, and he supported materially or financially the Government of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for the annexation of Crimea and the destabilisation of Ukraine. He is responsible for actively supporting or implementing, actions or policies which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, or stability or security in Ukraine.
Tigran Khudaverdyan is former Executive Director and deputy CEO of Yandex N.V., having resigned from those positions following his designation by the Union. He remains among the top managers of Yandex, shaping the activities of the company.