French president Macron confirms Telegram CEO’s arrest, gives reasons

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has said the arrest of the Telegram founder, Paul Durov, was a part of an ongoing judicial investigation and not a political move.

In a post made on X through his official handle, the President, on Monday, said reports that the Telegram CEO was arrested based on political motives are false as the decisions relating to the issue are strictly for the state’s judiciary.

President Macron’s statement is the first official confirmation of Mr Durov’s arrest.

The 39-year-old CEO was arrested and detained on Saturday at Le Bourget airport outside Paris shortly after arriving through a private jet from Azerbaijan.

The absence of an official confirmation created speculations about the reasons behind his detention.

But President Macron has responded by stating that he had encountered “false information here regarding France following the arrest of Pavel Durov” and emphasised that France remains deeply committed to free speech.

He also said, “France is deeply committed to freedom of expression and communication, to innovation, and to the spirit of entrepreneurship. It will remain so. In a state governed by the rule of law, freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights.

“It is up to the judiciary, in full independence, to enforce the law. 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.”

Telegram CEO arrest

Mr Durov, a Russian-born business executive, is being accused of having failed to moderate criminal activity on the platform.

A police spokesperson informed Reuters that Mr Durov is being investigated by the national cybercrime and fraud offices for his lack of cooperation in cases involving cyber and financial crimes on Telegram.

Mr Durov faces allegations that the messaging app facilitates criminality including money laundering and drug trafficking.

But Telegram has said its founder supports “Telegram financially and ideologically” and has nothing to hide.

Telegram officials stated that the platform specifically stays away from “politically motivated censorship”, but it does block “terrorist bots and channels”.

The officials also noted that Mr Durov is a citizen of the United Arab Emirates and France. But it is unclear whether he has given up his Russian citizenship.

Meanwhile, the Russian Embassy in France, on Sunday, also wrote on Facebook that it has been trying to “clarify the reasons for the detention and to provide for the protection of Mr Durov’s rights and facilitate consular access”.

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French authorities, however, have not been cooperating with Russian officials according to the embassy.

Multiple Russian officials criticised the businessman’s arrest, arguing that it exposes the West’s double standards regarding free speech and democracy.

About Telegram

Telegram is a cloud-based messaging app. It is a widely used messaging app which was launched in August 2013.

The CEO left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with demands to shut down opposition groups on his VK social media platform, which he later sold and focused primarily on Telegram.

In 2021, he acquired his French passport through a special procedure for high-profile foreigners, which exempted him from the usual legal requirements, such as residing in the country for at least five years.

The platform allows users to send messages, photos and large files as well as create groups for up to 200,000 people or channels for broadcasting to unlimited audiences.

According to a report by Statista, Telegram is the third most downloaded messenger app globally following WhatsApp and Snapchat.

Since its inception, the platform has rapidly gained popularity. It became more popular with the advent of the Russia-Ukraine war and currently serves as a crucial communication tool in conflict zones.

However, the Telegram development team is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.