Linus Torvalds affirms expulsion of Russian maintainers

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Oct 24, 2024,
updated Oct 31, 2024

Linux creator Linus Torvalds on Wednesday affirmed the removal last week of about a dozen kernel maintainers associated with Russia.

On October 18, Linux kernel developer Greg Kroah-Hartman published a message to the Linux kernel mailing list showing that a handful of Linux developers in the MAINTAINERS file had been removed.

His explanation was vague. "Remove some entries due to various compliance requirements," Kroah-Hartman wrote. "They can come back in the future if sufficient documentation is provided."

Mailing list participants pushed back, asking for further explanation about the removed names, all of which appear to be Russian and most of which are associated with a Russian (.ru) email address. Russia is currently subject to US government sanctions related to its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and other concerns.

Those dropped from the maintainer list oversee various Linux drivers that provide interoperability with hardware from vendors like Acer and Cirrus Logic.

Read on

Slashdot:

• Linus Torvalds Comments On The Russian Linux Maintainers Being Delisted - Slashdot

  Linux creator Linus Torvalds has since commented on the situation: Ok, lots of Russian trolls out and about. It's entirely clear why the change was done, it's not getting reverted, and using multiple random anonymous accounts to try to "grass root" it by Russian troll factories isn't going to change anything. And FYI for the actual innocent bystanders who aren't troll farm accounts - the "various compliance requirements" are not just a US thing.

  If you haven't heard of Russian sanctions yet, you should try to read the news some day. And by "news," I don't mean Russian state-sponsored spam. As to sending me a revert patch - please use whatever mush you call brains. I'm Finnish. Did you think I'd be *supporting* Russian aggression? Apparently it's not just lack of real news, it's lack of history knowledge too.

Lunduke:

• Sanctions Hit Linux Kernel, Russian Programmers Banned

  Biden's Executive Order 14071, forbids Russians from working with or using GPL'd software made in the USA.

From The Insider and Ars Technica:

• “I’m Finnish. Did you think I'd be supporting Russian aggression?”: Linux creator confirms Russian developers expelled due to sanctions

  On Wednesday, Linus Torvalds, the creator of the Linux operating system, confirmed the removal of close to a dozen Russian-affiliated maintainers — key developers responsible for overseeing a specific area of the Linux kernel — from the project.

  On Oct. 18, Linux kernel developer Greg Kroah-Hartman announced the changes via the Linux kernel mailing list, noting that several developers listed in the MAINTAINERS file had been dropped. His explanation was brief: “Remove some entries due to various compliance requirements. They can come back in the future if sufficient documentation is provided.”

  The decision sparked questions from the open-source software community. Members sought more details concerning the removal, especially as the affected names appeared to be Russian, with most tied to Russian (.ru) email addresses. Russia is currently under U.S. government sanctions, linked to its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

• 11 Russians removed from Linux kernel software development project over alleged “compliance requirements”

  11 Russian programmers have been removed from the list of Linux kernel developers, according to a report by OpenNET, a Russian news website about free and open source software. The names of the Russian programmers were removed from the list of project maintainers — key developers responsible for overseeing a specific area of the Linux kernel.

  The changes were made by Greg Kroah-Hartman, a major Linux kernel developer responsible for the maintenance of the software’s stable versions. He cited compliance with “various compliance requirements” as the reason for the removal. The changes were implemented on Oct. 18.

  “Remove some entries due to various compliance requirements. They can come back in the future if sufficient documentation is provided,” Kroah-Hartman explained in a comment on the maintainer file changes. However, he did not clarify what specific documentation was needed or which legal requirements were being referenced.

• Removal of Russian coders spurs debate about Linux kernel’s politics - Ars Technica

  That two-line comment, submitted by major Linux kernel maintainer Greg Kroah-Hartman, accompanied a patch that removed about a dozen names from the kernle's MAINTAINERS file. "Some entries" notably had either Russian names or .ru email addresses. "Various compliance requirements" was, in this case, sanctions against Russia and Russian companies, stemming from that country's invasion of Ukraine.

  This merge did not go unnoticed. Replies on the kernel mailing list asked about this "very vague" patch. Kernel developer James Bottomley wrote that "we" (seemingly speaking for Linux maintainers) had "actual advice" from Linux Foundation counsel. Employees of companies on the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (OFAC SDN), or connected to them, will have their collaborations "subject to restrictions," and "cannot be in the MAINTAINERS file." "Sufficient documentation" would mean evidence that someone does not work for an OFAC SDN entity, Bottomley wrote.

Also in:

• Linux starts banning Russian leading kernel developers

  Greg Kroah-Hartman, the second-in-command at Linux after Linus Torvalds, has released a patch that removes a dozen leading developers from the kernel who are Russian or somehow connected to Russia. Most of them have email addresses in the .ru zone. This was reported by Phoronix.

  This applies to the developers of Acer Aspire 1 EC drivers, Cirrus Logic CLPS711X ARM architecture, Baikal-T1 PVT hardware monitor driver, Libata PATA drivers, Libata SATA AHCI Synopsys DWC controller drivers, ASCOT2E media drivers, Baikal-T1 MIPS platform driver, NTB IDT driver, PPTP driver, Renesas R-Car SATA driver, Renesas Super-H Ethernet driver, and UFS file system. Only the support records are removed, not the drivers themselves.

• Russian linux kernel maintainers removed due to sanctions

  Linus Torvalds, the creator and lead developer of Linux, confirmed that twelve Russian nationals were removed from the group of software engineers maintaining the operating system's kernel. They were cut loose to comply with sanctions against the county, he wrote.

3 more:

• Why Were Russian Programmers Banned From Linux, But Not Huawei Employees?

  Plus: Linus Torvalds goes on attack against "Russian Trolls".

• Linus Torvalds slams supporters of delisted Russian driver maintainers as ‘trolls’

  Linus Torvalds has dismissed those concerned about the recent dismissal of Russian kernel driver maintainers as trolls.

• Some Clarity On The GNU/Linux Kernel's "Compliance Requirements" Around Russian Sanctions

  When a number of Russian Linux developers were removed from their MAINTAINERS file in the GNU/Linux kernel, it was described as due to "compliance requirements" but vague in what those requirements entailed. Linus Torvalds then commented on the Russian Linux maintainers being de-listed and made it clear that they were done due to government compliance requirements / legal issues around Russia.

SN:

• Russian Linux Kernel Maintainers Banned, Far Reaching Implications for FLOSS

  This will likely have far reaching consequences, going vastly beyond the Linux kernel, with any FLOSS organization in the US or under direct US influence having to ban Russian contributors before the end of the year.

One more:

• Linux creator approves de-listing of several kernel maintainers associated with Russia

  Linux creator Linus Torvalds issued a statement this week expressing support for the removal of around a dozen Russians from the list of Linux kernel maintainers.

  The comments came after the news broke last week, causing debate and confusion within the coding community. It’s unclear who made the decision to remove 11 Russians, but it was announced by Greg Kroah-Hartman, a major Linux kernel developer.

More:

• Linux Kernel Project Drops 11 Russian Developers Amid US Sanctions Concerns

  Linux Foundation removes 11 Russian developers from the Linux kernel project due to U.S. sanctions. Linus Torvalds confirms compliance-driven decision, sparking debate within the open-source community.

  Linus Torvalds, the creator of the Linux operating system, has confirmed the removal of 11 Russian-affiliated maintainers/programmers from the Linux kernel project, a move indicating the intersection of open-source software development and global politics.

  This decision was implemented on October 18 and has since sparked debate within the open-source community. It affects developers working on drivers for hardware from companies like Acer, Cirrus, and Baikal.

Godwin's Law:

• 8. 11 people associated with Russia were excluded from the list of employees responsible for developing the kernel of the Linux operating system (OS). This was reported by Kommersant. Linux founder Linus Torvalds confirmed that all 11 people have been suspended due to the fact that they are related to To Russia: "I am a Finn. Did you think I would support Russian aggression?" Подробнее: https://eadaily.com/en/news/2024/10/25/imf-recognition-nazism-in-linux-democracy-binge-morning-coffee-with-eadaily

  First of all, it doesn't matter who he is by nationality, he's just a stupid Nazi. Secondly, all this is tracing paper from the persecution of Jews in The Third Reich.

NZ press:

• The consequences of Russia's invasion of Ukraine reach the hugely popular open source Linux kernel, which runs much of the world's IT systems

  The repercussions of Russia's invasion of Ukraine has spread to the developers of the free and open source Linux kernel, serving perhaps as an illustration of how interconnected the world is, sometimes in unexpected areas.

  This week, a patch for the Linux kernel was issued by the developer collective behind it, which removed a bunch of volunteer Russian developers from the list of maintainers.

  "Remove some entries due to various compliance requirements. They can come back in the future if sufficient documentation is provided," was the message for the patch.

  In developer terms a patch is a piece of replacement code that is inserted to fix bugs, add or remove features, and to provide improvements for software.

SJVN:

• Why remove Russian maintainers of Linux kernel? Here's what Torvalds says [Ed: LF funded and Microsoft funded outlet]

  Many of us like to think that our open-source work is unrelated to geopolitics. Think again.

German media:

• Linux: Several Russian maintainers kicked out

  Kroah-Hartman did not want to explain exactly what this means in the mailing list. However, it is noticeable that most of the affected maintainers use a .ru address. Shortly afterwards, however, Linus Torvalds made it clearer what the reasons are: Of course there would now be a bunch of Russian trolls. And it was clear why this had happened. The trolls would not be able to undo this. "If you want to send me a revert patch, please use the mush you call brains," Torvalds said.

  However, three other statements from Torvalds are clear: the "various compliance requirements" are not just a US thing. And anyone who has not yet heard about sanctions against Russia should read the news. He also asked why, as a Finn, he of all people would support Russian aggression –. Apparently, a lack of historical knowledge would be added to not reading the news. The background: Finland declared its independence from Russia in 1917 and has had to defend this by military means ever since.

German with fame opposes this:

• Harald Welte: On GNU/Linux MAINTAINERS file removal of Russian developers

  I sincerely regret to see Linux kernel patches like this one removing Russian developers from the MAINTAINERS file. To me, it is a sign or maybe even a symbol of how far the Linux kernel developer community I remember from ~ 20 years ago has changed, and how much it has alienated itself from what I remember back in the day.

  In my opinion this commit is wrong at so many different levels:

  • it is intransparent. Initially it gave no explanation whatsoever (other than some compliance hand-waving). There was some follow-up paraphrasing one paragraph of presumed legal advice that was given presumably by 'Linux' Foundation to Linus. That's not a thorough legal analysis at all. It doesn't even say to whom it was given, and who (the individual developers? 'Linux' Foundation? Distributors?) is presumed to be subject to the unspecified regulations in which specific jurisdiction

It's FOSS News:

• No Russians in my Kernel! Geopolitics Reaches Linux Project

  The Linux kernel is one of the biggest open source projects in the entire world. The majority of people consider it as the most influential collaboration with several thousand developers from across the globe.

  However, a recent development has raised eyebrows towards the project and its lead maintainer, Linus Torvalds.

Another one:

• Linux creator supports removing Russian kernel maintainers

  Linux creator Linus Torvalds has expressed support for removing several Russian maintainers from the Linux kernel project. This decision, announced by prominent developer Greg Kroah-Hartman, has sparked debate within the Linux community. The removals affect 11 Russian developers, largely due to compliance with new sanctions, though specific details of the removals still need to be fully clarified.

  Responding to the concerns, Torvalds stated, “If you haven’t heard of Russian sanctions yet, you should try reading the news sometime,” emphasising that the changes will not be reversed.

2 more:

• Why geopolitics risks global open source collaborations

  Linux Foundation’s decision to ban Russian maintainers has the potential to destroy open source’s global collaboration model

• Cybersecurity News: Five Eyes program, Chinese activity, Russian Linux

  Last year, the UK’s GCHQ National Cyber Security Centre and MI5’s National Protective Security Authority launched Secure Innovation, a program designed to help secure tech startups from state-backed threats. After the first-ever public meeting of the heads of the Five Eyes domestic intelligence agencies, the UK, US, Canada, New Zealand, and Australian governments agreed to launch regionalized versions. Secure Innovation provides basic advice on protecting technology, using simple questions to create a personalized action plan. The UK found over 500 startups engaged with the Secure Innovation program in its first year.

  [...]

  In a statement to local media, the Russian digital ministry said it plans to create an “alternative structure” and an independent development community around Linux. This statement came after the Linux community delisted 11 Russian kernel maintainers, later explaining that it would add restrictions to developers whose companies are controlled by anyone named on the US Office of Foreign Assets Control list. Russia called this “an act of discrimination.” Linux creator Linus Torvalds doubled down on the action, saying the decision “is not getting reverted.”