May 19 (Reuters) - A Russian court has fined U.S. tech

giant Apple ( AAPL ) 7.5 million roubles ($93,500) for three

separate breaches of Russian rules on what Moscow calls LGBT

propaganda, the Moscow courts' press office said on Monday.

Russia in 2023 widened restrictions on the promotion of

"non-traditional sexual relations" amid a broader crackdown on

LGBT rights, which President Vladimir Putin has sought to

portray as evidence of moral decay in Western countries.

Moscow's Tagansky Court found Apple Distribution

International Ltd. guilty of three administrative offences,

ordering that three fines of 2.5 million roubles each be paid.

Apple ( AAPL ) did not immediately respond to an emailed request for

comment.

Apple's ( AAPL ) representative in court had requested that the

hearings be closed to the public, the Mediazona news outlet

reported, meaning that the root of each dispute was not known.

Russia has designated the "international LGBT movement" as

extremist and those supporting it as terrorists, paving the way

for serious criminal cases against LGBT people and their

advocates.

Russian courts have issued fines for those that violate the

"LGBT propaganda" law, including online film distributors and

executives.

($1 = 80.2205 roubles)