PARIS – French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that the arrest in France of the head of the popular messaging app Telegram, Pavel Durov, was not a political act but part of an independent investigation.
French media reported that Mr Durov was detained at Paris airport on Saturday on an arrest warrant alleging his platform was used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other offences. Mr. Durov is a citizen of Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis.
In the first public reaction of French officials to his arrest, President Macron, in a post on the X platform, said that his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression, but “freedoms are guaranteed within a legal framework, both in social networks and in everyday life, to protect people and respect their fundamental rights.”
Dismissing what he called false information being circulated about his arrest, he said that “It is not a political decision at all. It is up to the judges to make a decision.”
Russian government officials have reacted strongly to Mr. Durov's arrest. Some of them have called it politically motivated and as an example that openly shows, as they say, the double standard of the West in terms of freedom of expression.
The Telegram platform, which says it has close to a billion users worldwide, was founded by Mr Durov and his brother in response to the Russian government's crackdown on pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow in late 2011. and 2012.
The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to crack down on the digital space, and Telegram, along with pro-privacy rhetoric, gave Russians a convenient way to communicate and share news.
The Telegram platform continues to be a widespread source of information in Ukraine, where media and officials use it to disseminate information on the war and to convey warning messages about missile or airstrikes.
In a statement posted on its platform after the arrest, 'Telegram' said it respects the laws of the European Union and the control of its content is “within industry standards and getting better and better.”
“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the misuse of that platform”, it was said in the 'Telegram' post. “Nearly a billion users around the globe use Telegram as a means of communication and as a source of vital information. We expect a quick resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”
A French judge extended the detention order for Mr. Dunov on Sunday night, French media reported on Monday. Under French law, Mr. Durov can remain in custody for questioning by investigators for up to four days. After that, the judges must decide whether to file an indictment against him or release him from custody.
The Russian embassy in Paris said its consular officials had been denied access to Mr. Durov because French authorities considered his French citizenship to be paramount. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that “We still don't know what exactly Mr. Durov is being accused of… We'll wait until the charges are announced – if they are announced.”
Billionaire Elon Musk, owner of the social platform X, who has in the past called himself an “unconditional supporter of free speech”, tweeted '#freePavel' in support of Mr Durov following the news of his arrest. his.
Western governments have often criticized the Telegram platform for a lack of content oversight, which experts say creates the potential for the messaging platform to be used for money laundering, drug trafficking and the distribution of material related to the sexual exploitation of minors.
In 2022, Germany fined Telegram operators $5 million for failing to establish a legal framework for reporting illegal content or to designate a representative office in Germany that would accept official letters. These two issues are mandatory under German laws governing large internet platforms.
Last year, Brazil temporarily suspended Telegram because of the platform's refusal to hand over to authorities data on the activities of neo-Nazi groups as part of a police investigation into an armed attack on a school in november
