Reporters Without Borders director comments on Ukraine's ranking in Press Freedom Index

The head of the organization that protects freedom of speech and the safety of journalists around the world shared his thoughts in a comment to Ukrinform.

"It's because of the Russian Federation action in Ukraine. So this is one of the strongest impacts in the global score of Ukraine. So the Russian Federation is to blame for that," Bruttin said.

He explained that the Press Freedom Index ranks territories and countries, not the actions of governments.

"The toll paid by both Ukrainian journalists and international journalists is not the fault of the Ukrainian government," he said.

Bruttin also noted positive changes in Ukraine's legal framework regarding media operations.

"We have acknowledged that the Ukrainian media law is a strong asset going forward," he said.

According to him, RSF understands the restrictions imposed by martial law and considers some of them "truly proportionate."

"The thing is that we consider that pressure could be alleviated towards investigative journalists that showed concerns over pressure that they were getting from some military authorities," Bruttin said.

He also highlighted the unresolved issue of the "media economy," which, in his opinion, has still not been properly addressed. He added that RSF intends to raise this topic on the agenda of this year's Ukraine Recovery Conference.

Bruttin added that it is time to grant more freedom to private and state media that have demonstrated the ability to operate responsibly under martial law.

In 2025, Ukraine dropped to 62nd place in RSF's World Press Freedom Index, down from 61st place in 2024.