The Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture Tetiana Berezhna discussed sanctions against Russian content and support for Ukraine with Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, Berezhna reported in a Facebook post.

One of the topics discussed was restricting the distribution of the Russian propaganda animated series Masha and the Bear. As the deputy prime minister recalled, President Volodymyr Zelensky, in August, enacted sanctions against the creators, distributor, and rights holder of the aggressor country’s animated production.

“We requested international streaming platforms to remove the Ukrainian adaptation. Ted Sarandos assured us that the Ukrainian version is unavailable to Netflix users worldwide,” Berezhna said.

The deputy prime minister, for her part, stressed the importance of preventing further Russian propaganda from influencing children in countries around the world.

The meeting also focused on Ukraine’s potential as a future film-production hub in Central and Eastern Europe.

Berezhna emphasized that Ukraine has highly skilled professionals, infrastructure, and the capacity to build a competitive audiovisual industry. She proposed that Netflix consider possible areas of cooperation in this field.

The deputy prime minister also thanked Netflix for supporting Ukrainian professionals and for its principled decision to cease operations in Russia at the beginning of the full-scale war.

As previously reported by Ukrinform, in August this year, President Zelensky signed four decrees enacting National Security and Defense Council decisions on sanctions against Russian defense-industry enterprises, companies belonging to the Rusal group, collaborators, senior officials, and the authors and distributors of the animated series “Masha and the Bear.”