Russia accuses YouTube of censoring content at Washington's behest

MOSCOW, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Russia's foreign ministry accused YouTube on Friday of censoring content and preventing access to information at the behest of the United States, warning that it saw ample grounds to take action against the video hosting site.

Russia has in recent years heavily criticised Alphabet's (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google, which owns YouTube, for taking down channels of Russian media and public figures, failing to remove content that Moscow considers illegal or undesirable and for not appropriately storing its data in Russia.

"We see a lot of significant grounds to take measures against the YouTube video hosting site," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.

"Numerous systematic violations of Russian law and a demonstrative disregard for the domestic audience and its interests leave our state's regulatory bodies the right to use the appropriate legal tools.