As the war between Russia and Ukraine extends into the third year of exhausting operations, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy bans the country’s military forces from any form of gambling. As Bloomberg reports, the President resorts to the measure amidst eroding morale concerns about Ukrainian soldiers, whose betting activities may pose a security threat to the Ukrainian military forces and operations.
Military Gambling Ban:
The ban reportedly prohibits Ukrainian soldiers from placing bets in gambling establishments and online facilities as long as martial law is effective. Martial law, enforced in February 2022, has reportedly been referred to in the decree signed by Zelenskiy to impose a gambling ban on the Ukrainian army.
Asking for Technical Assistance from Apple and Google :
Bloomberg reports that the President’s cabinet prohibits gambling advertising through mobile operators. To ban iGaming applications from mobile game stores, the Cabinet will reportedly refer to Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google to arrange for unlicensed content to be blocked in the country.
Petrychenko’s Petition:
The measure results from a recent petition submitted by Ukrainian serviceman Pavlo Petrychenko, who didn’t live to see the petition adopted and enforced. Petrychenko died on the front line on April 15, 2024, and was buried in Kyiev last week, around a month after he had reported that soldiers on the front line had been involved in gambling activities.
According to Petrychenko, soldiers were spending their earnings to place bets with any available operator. As reported, they were taking loans or even pledging drones, cameras, and other military equipment to repay gambling debts. As reported by Bloomberg, Petrychenko’s petition, issued in late March, collected the required count of around 25,000 signatures and was adopted by the Cabinet soon after the launch.
Security Concerns:
The most critical point of the serviceman’s petition refers to his concerns about the risk of Russian online gaming operations tailoring gambling ads to access private data of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians, as reported by Bloomberg. These concerns have been considered by the President’s cabinet and the Ukrainian government and are now reflected in the gambling ban applicable to all gambling facilities available in Ukraine.
Blocking Gambling Accounts:
According to the source, the government will provide more details about the gambling advertising restrictions later, with the restrictions being meanwhile applicable for gambling advertising of any kind. At the same time, the National Bank of Ukraine will follow up to ensure that notices to block payments to online gambling accounts are duly distributed to banks, as Bloomberg reports.
War Continues:
Ukrainian forces have been facing morale issues due to the shortages of ammunition and manpower, with their gambling activities raising security concerns to make President Zelenskiy introduce a ban on all kinds of gambling. Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress approved the $61 billion aid for Ukraine to deal with the ammunition shortages.
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