The arrest of the billionaire Telegram founder on French soil was not a political decision, the country’s president has said.
Pavel Durov, who created the encrypted messaging app, was detained after his private jet landed at Le Bourget airport on the outskirts of Paris on Saturday.
He has been arrested and detained as part of a cyber criminality investigation – concerning crimes related to illicit transactions, child sexual abuse images and fraud – the Paris prosecutor has said.
In his first public comment on the matter, President Emmanuel Macron said his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights”.
He denounced “false information” about Durov’s arrest: “The arrest of the president of Telegram on French soil took place as part of an ongoing judicial investigation. It is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to rule on the matter.”
Russian government officials have expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest, with some calling it politically driven and saying it showed the West’s double standards on freedom of speech.
But this outcry has raised eyebrows among Kremlin critics – in 2018, Russian authorities tried to block Telegram themselves, but failed and eventually withdrew the ban in 2020.
In a statement posted on its platform, Telegram said it has nothing to hide, as it abides by EU laws including the digital services act, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving”.
“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said.
“Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as a means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”
Telegram was founded by Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012. He left after losing control of his previous social media company, Vkontakte (VK).
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Who is the Telegram founder detained in France?
Pavel Durov in Barcelona, Spain, in 2016. Pic: Reuters
It is now one of the most downloaded apps in the world with close to one billion users.
It offers end-to-end encryption – effectively protecting data from being intercepted – and has a strong focus on privacy.
But these features have made it a popular place for criminal activity and it was recently exploited by far-right activists who sparked riots in the UK over the Southport stabbings.