Torvalds stands firm in his decision, asserting that the presence of “Russian troll factories” will not dissuade him from his actions.
“Some entries were removed due to a variety of compliance obligations. They may be reinstated in the future if adequate documentation is submitted.”
This brief statement, provided by prominent Linux kernel maintainer Greg Kroah-Hartman, was included with a patch that eliminated approximately a dozen names from the kernel’s MAINTAINERS file. Notably, “some entries” involved individuals with either Russian names or .ru email addresses. The term “various compliance requirements” referenced the sanctions against Russia and its enterprises resulting from the nation’s incursion into Ukraine.
The merging of this patch did not go unnoticed by the community. Responses on the kernel mailing list inquired about the specifics of this “vague” update. Kernel developer James Bottomley indicated that “we” (likely representing the Linux maintainers) received “concrete recommendations” from legal counsel at the Linux Foundation. Collaborations involving employees of companies listed by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control as Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (OFAC SDN), or those affiliated with such entities, will face “restrictions” and “cannot be included in the MAINTAINERS file.” According to Bottomley, “sufficient documentation” would entail proof that an individual does not have ties to an OFAC SDN entity.
A series of messages emerged questioning the legitimacy, abruptness, potential US influence, and unexamined nature of the commit. This sparked broader inquiries regarding the intersection of open source code and international politics. The creator of Linux, Linus Torvalds, contributed to the discussion by stating, “Ok, lots of Russian trolls out and about.” He expressed that the reasons for the change were clear, emphasizing that “Russian troll factories” would not be reversing it and that the “various compliance requirements” are not solely an American concern.
“Regarding revert patches – please utilize whatever reasoning you possess. I’m Finnish. Did you think I would support Russian aggression? It seems there’s not only a lack of real news, but also a deficiency in historical knowledge,” Torvalds commented before concluding his response. Later, Torvalds stated that he wouldn’t delve into specifics that kernel maintainers had been “advised by lawyers” and would not engage in discussions about legal matters with random individuals on the internet, whom he suspected might be “paid actors and/or have been incited by them.”
The majority of individuals removed from the maintainers file had been working on drivers for hardware produced by companies like Acer, Cirrus, and particularly Baikal, a fabless chip manufacturer that had been attempting to create Russian-designed ARM CPUs and declared bankruptcy in 2023. Among the Russian developers who were removed was Serge Semin, whose GitHub profile indicates collaboration with the sanctioned tech company Baikal. He wrote a detailed farewell message to the kernel mailing list, identifying himself as a “volunteer and hobbyist.”
Sanctions imposed on Russia and its enterprises have previously intersected with Linux kernel maintenance. As reported by Phronix, last year, networking patches submitted by developers linked to Baikal were rejected by a maintainer of one subsystem, while other patches from Baikal were accepted into the kernel from different sources. US sanctions on Russian technology companies have had severe implications for the Russian economy as a whole.
At present, the contributions made by the Russian programmers who have been taken off the maintainers list are still included in the kernel. Ars has contacted the Linux Foundation for a statement and will revise this post once a reply is received.
ChicagoVPS is your gateway to unparalleled hosting solutions. Our state-of-the-art datacenters and powerful network ensures lightning-fast speeds and uninterrupted connectivity for your websites and applications. Whether you’re a startup looking for scalable resources or an enterprise in need of enterprise-grade hosting, our range of plans and customizable solutions guarantee a perfect fit. Trust in ChicagoVPS to deliver excellence, combining unmatched reliability and top-tier support.
For Inquiries or to receive a personalized quote, please reach out to us through our contact form here or email us at sales@chicagovps.net.
