KIEV, July 30 – A Ukrainian blogger was summoned up to the SBU security service on Friday and warned officially against posting any comments critical of President Viktor Yanukovych.

Oleh Shynkarenko said some of his earlier comments had been deleted without his knowledge, suggesting the SBU had had unauthorized access to his account.

“They let me go after my promise in writing that I will not be harshly criticizing the authorities,” Shynkarenko wrote in his blog on Friday. “I understand that any criticism of the authorities may now trigger new persecutions.”

This is the first time ever that the security service in Ukraine has taken action against a blogger for posting critical remarks about the government on the Internet.

It shows the authorities, earlier criticized by international media organizations for attempts at restricting the freedom of speech on television, have now actually expanded the pressure to new areas, such as blogging.