Twitter on Friday said it would not remove controversial tweets by world leaders because doing so would “hide important information people should be able to see and debate”.

The statement comes after concerns were raised over United States President Donald Trump’s online posts that critics say violate Twitter’s terms of service because of their provocative nature. A group had staged a protest outside Twitter’s headquarters in San Francisco on Wednesday, alleging that the microblogging website was “complicit” in Trump’s tweets that “endanger the world”.

In a blog post, Twitter said that blocking world leaders or removing controversial tweets would “not silence that leader, but it would certainly hamper necessary discussion around their words and actions”.

“We are working to make Twitter the best place to see and freely discuss everything that matters,” the statement said. “We believe that’s the best way to help our society make progress.”

In September, after anger over Trump’s tweet that North Korea “won’t be around much longer”, Twitter had refused to take it down and said the statement was “newsworthy” and in public interest.

The latest tweet to have upset critics was the one on January 2, when Trump taunted North Korea leader Kim Jong-un for his claims of having a nuclear button on his desk, saying his own button was “much bigger and more powerful”.