In recent days, discussions surrounding the development of the Linux kernel have extended beyond technical matters. Linus Torvalds, the creator and leader of the project, recently made a significant announcement.
According to the hardware review site Phoronix, Greg Kroah-Hartman, Torvalds’ right-hand man, revealed that Linux had decided to remove several kernel maintainers from their positions.
It quickly became apparent that these developers shared a common trait. They were all Russian or had some connection to Russia. Additionally, most of them used email addresses with the .ru domain.
The decision drew criticism from the Linux community, but Torvalds quickly addressed the concerns on the Linux kernel mailing list. In his message, he said that the complaints likely originated from “Russian trolls.”
“It’s entirely clear why the change was made, it’s not getting reverted,” Torvalds explained. He emphasized that the sanctions against Russia due to the war in Ukraine were the primary reason for this decision, a point that was initially unclear.
In response, Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development announced plans to create its own Linux community.
Details about this project are scarce, but it appears to mirror the country’s actions with the RISC-V architecture. This initiative could pave the way for the development of Russia’s own chips, free from potential commercial disputes. Now, the same could apply to software if Russia finally pursues its own line of Linux kernel development.
However, it’s easier said than done. While the Russian developer community may be sizable and skilled, creating and maintaining a fork of the Linux kernel is an enormous challenge.
Most of the development work on the Linux kernel is conducted not by independent developers but by those working for large technology companies such as Huawei, Intel, Red Hat, Google, and AMD.
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