Ukraine has imposed sanctions on the creators and distributors of the Russian children's cartoon "Masha and the Bear," a step that could see the globally popular series blocked in the country and stripped of revenue from international streaming platforms.
The sanctions, signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, target the animation studio Animaccord, the show's producer Dmitry Loveyko, and animator Oleg Kuzovkov, among others. According to the executive order, the sanctions last ten years and apply to five individuals and four legal entities.
Ukrainian Culture Minister Tetyana Berezhna announced the move on Friday, saying on social media that it creates "legal grounds to block the content in Ukraine and engage international platforms to restrict its monetization and distribution." She added: "Russian propaganda has no place on children's screens — in Ukraine or anywhere in the world."
The decree, as stated on Zelenskyy's website, asserts that the cartoon presents "a threat to Ukraine's national security" and blocks access to it on Ukrainian territory. Kyiv has also said it will seek to have its sanctions mirrored by international partners.
A global phenomenon under scrutiny
"Masha and the Bear," which follows the adventures of a mischievous little girl and her friend, a retired circus bear, launched in 2009 and is based on a Russian oral fairytale. It has become one of the most successful Russian cultural exports, with the show's YouTube channel ranking among the 50 most-watched in the world. As of June 2026, the channel had more than 54 billion views worldwide, according to Deutsche Welle. Al Jazeera reported that the series as a whole has been viewed more than 37 billion times on YouTube, with some individual episodes topping four billion views, and that it is broadcast in about 100 countries.
The Ukrainian-language channel for the show had 800 million views in 2025 and roughly 18 million subscribers, Berezhna said in further comments on Facebook. According to the Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda, that channel topped the ranking of the most popular children's channels in the country last August.
The sanctions come amid a broader decline in the presence of Russian cultural products in Ukraine since Russia's invasion in 2022, with boycotts and official restrictions reducing their reach.
Long-standing criticism
The cartoon has faced criticism from Ukraine and its allies, including Estonia and the United Kingdom, for allegedly serving as an instrument of Russia's soft power. In June, Ukraine protested against Netflix's move to acquire the rights to stream new seasons of the show.
Concerns about the show date back years. Ukraine's State Film Agency filed its first complaint against the series in 2017, during the annexation of Crimea. In the UK, more than 50 parliamentarians appealed to Culture Minister Lisa Nandy to urge streaming platforms to remove the cartoon, citing Russian and Soviet military imagery. Several Estonian politicians have also argued that the show is an instrument of Russian soft power.
However, not all such criticisms have gone unchallenged. UK academic Mark Galeotti wrote an article objecting to the British lawmakers' appeal, saying the show is "cute" and has "a big heart."
Reactions from the Kremlin and the studio
The Kremlin has dismissed the allegations. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the cartoon had "conquered the world" by promoting "the finest human qualities," and described Ukraine's actions as illustrating "the ugly nature" of the authorities in Kyiv.
Animaccord, the studio behind the show, has called past allegations "false and defamatory," insisting that it operates independently and receives no funding from the Russian government.
The show has also been controversial in Russia itself, where it was criticized in its early days for allegedly contradicting traditional values about the roles of girls and fathers.
The sanctions mark a formal escalation in Ukraine's efforts to push back against what it views as Russian cultural influence, with the government now seeking to extend that push to international platforms.